SbbDTEEaDOD 
















































































< 

I 






..... \, "’ „*° .... %••■•’ ^ % * .o'•• / V ** .^v A*‘ %_ '■'T~'' .o’ ■%. 

—^ * v Am- \ y>m\ A**' 

v^ '.mm: .si zW&m: xX :^m:- W :*m: ** 



V. o .A* ,.l^. *+ <f Sj&Ll. °o A 4 ,.o.. ^ 

"■ t°* •*'&£%*< :§mSit- *+# 

° V °<* 








*S rvNXNHLtt^; 

> 4 ,** \ '-sSlR* ♦* *<> •; 

o sd 'TTv* a < - 


^ • , uws^ %' \ 

<£• «> • <ir 

V- V> **.<>’ a* 

aO » * V ^4 ^ </ V * t • o 

, £ •' *&* - V* /Iv 


V ^ 

V -£• 







I ft A VP - < 

* «? ^ • 


% ~° J*’ s*tmi: % c 

, - *«u—A' 'oy 4 • 4 4 Si 3 '>"- ^o< 

-. - —vv*- ’* iP°* '^Mpt &**. : gp>« #°+ 

V a» ,•>»>;.. %> «, v .:«/*:. v j>\'j&&. > v •!••» * 

- w* .^m^j.o ^<9* */SwS- .^ Wao 

$*« - 


>.' W : 


* ^ ^ 


v 



V*(V 





















































































































AUTHOR OF 

Hausam’s Practical Writing Course 
The Hausam System of Practical Writing 
The Hausam System of Text Lettering 
Hausam’s Practical Penmanship Wall Charts, Etc. 


CAPPER PRINTING CO. TOPEKA 








Lhv 

■Wv\ 


COPYRIGHT 1923 
BY 

L, H. HAUSAM 


© Cl A 7 6185 3 ! 
OCT -8 1923 

,)>i f 


DEDICATION 


THIS BOOK 

IS AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED TO 

MY WIFE 

To whose sympathy and encouragement 
and devoted companionship during, 
the past thirty years its forth¬ 
coming, is largely due. 


THE AUTHOR 




INTRODUCTION 


HERE are several branches that have acquired 
the reputation of being the poorest taught sub¬ 
jects in the public schools, but only writing, 
among all the required subjects, can lay claim 
to the distinction of being the most nearly un¬ 
taught of all. As the field of observation 
widens, the qualified observer becomes more 
and more impressed with the deplorable situa¬ 
tion in which he finds this subject. A large 
percentage of the teachers are seriously lacking 
in ability to write well, in technical knowledge 
of the correct script forms, in a knowledge of the pedagogy of 
teaching penmanship, and in interest in it. Due to inadequate 
preparation and in consequent lack of interest, teachers quite gen¬ 
erally find excuses for neglecting the subject or for dropping it 
entirely from their already over-burdened programs. That pen¬ 
manship is practically always sacrificed for another or for other 
subjects of less importance in the life of the pupil seems never to 
occur to these teachers. 

The penmanship situation in the public schools, as a rule, pre¬ 
sents some outstanding inconsistencies, not the least of which is 
that it is universally listed as one of the required subjects and 
almost nowhere are pupils required to attain a worth while pro¬ 
ficiency in penmanship to entitle them to promotion or graduation. 
Many pupils fail in geography, history or arithmetic, but rarely 
does one fail in penmanship, although for the average pupil pen¬ 
manship holds, all through life, a value at least not second to 
any of the subjects mentioned. 


A teacher would hardly presume to teach any other subject 
with the slight fundamental knowledge of the subject that seems 
sufficient in penmanship. That a teacher can hardly write legibly 
and does not know the details of form embodied in any accurate 
letter, seems inconsequential, and in the face of this ignorance they 
often do not hesitate to offer the excuse for failure that their 
pupils feel no interest in the subject, take no pains, and make no 
improvement. Only a very small percentage of public school 
teachers even profess to be able to write with the arm move¬ 
ment, without which the execution of practical penmanship is 
impossible. 

The author undertakes to say that he believes he has made a 
careful examination of the results of average teaching as shown 
in pupils’ specimens in more cases than has any other professional 
penmanship teacher, and he does not hesitate to say that if all 
the subjects of the common school curriculum were as poorly 
taught as is penmanship, it would be no loss to the average com¬ 
munity to keep its school closed. The average pupil could do 
himself more good by possessing a penmanship text containing 
good copies and some plain instructions than is being done for 
him in the average school. This is because he gives the text book 
a place second to the place so ineffectually filled by the teacher, 
with the result that he never experiences an awakening of interest 
in the subject and makes no effort of consequence at learning it. 

That the average teacher can acquire a skill in writing and a 
knowledge of the pedagogy of the subject sufficient to secure 
really compensating results in the school room has been proved 
repeatedly wherever teachers have been given proper training. 





Properly trained teachers always find time for teaching this 
subject however crowded their programs may be. They find in¬ 
terest easily aroused and sustained, and their pupils become pos¬ 
sessed of a lifelong blessing in a good handwriting. 

Business men and college professors everywhere deplore the 
miserable scribbling imposed upon them by clerks and students, 
and they are right in assuming that the public schools are not 


doing their duty toward their pupils in graduating them into the 
activities of life or into college with the questionable distinction 
that rests upon writing hands that no one can read. It is the 
purpose of this Manual to help in correcting the conditions re¬ 
ferred to by placing before teachers in a systematic form the 
necessary fundamental principles, forms, ideas, methods and 
plans involved in teaching penmanship successfully. 


Emporia, Kansas. 


L. H. H. 


TABLE OF CONTENTS 


PART I 

Page 

The Teacher’s Preparation . 13 

Writing as a Dual Value Subject. . . 14 

The Question of Imitation and Individuality. 15 

Permanent Results . 4 . 16 

Slant, Height and Spacing in Arm Movement Writing. 18 

Left-Handed Writers . 21 

Real and Apparent Retrogression. 22 

Reserve Power and Scope of Movement. 23 

Class Drills . 25 

What Determines Good Letter Forms. 26 

Grading Pupils’ Specimens . 27 

Position. 29 

Development of the Motor System . 33 

Phases in Learning Penmanship . 34 

The Mere Movement Phase.. 35 

The Capital Letter Movement Phase . 37 

The Small Letter Movement Phase . 39 

Some Unwarranted Conclusions . 40 

Instructions and Criticisms . 41 

The Effect on Oval Drills on the Capitals. 43 


PART II 

Questions and Answers Concerning Penmanship Pedagogy . 47 

Questions and Answers Concerning Position . 54 

Questions and Answers Concerning Movement . 56 

Questions and Answers Concerning the Capitals . 60 

Questions and Answers Concerning the Small Letters . 62 

Questions and Answers Concerning the Numerals . 64 

PART III 

Chart, Presentation of the Hausam System of Practical Penmanship. ... 69 

The Controlling Strokes of the Capital Letters . 70 

Group I of the Capital Letters . 73 

Group II of the Capital Letters . 74 

Group III of the Capital Letters . 75 

Group IV of the Capital Letters . 76 

Group V of the Capital Letters . 77 

Group VI of the Capital Letters . 78 

Group VII of the Capital Letters . 79 

Group VIII of the Capital Letters. 80 

The Numerals . 81 


PART IV 

Page 

Penmanship in the Grades . 83 

Arranging the Work on the Page. 85 

Models for Arranging the Work on the Page . 86 

Writing Materials . 89 

The Schedule . 91 

Standards for Grading Specimens of Writing in Grade I . 92 

Standards for Grading Specimens of Writing in Grade II . 94 

Standards for Grading Specimens of Writing in Grade III . 96 

Standards for Grading Specimens of Writing in Grade IV . 98 

Standards for Grading Specimens of Writing in Grade V . 100 

Standards for Grading Specimens of Writing in Grade VI . 102 

Standards for Grading Specimens of Writing in Grade VII . 104 

Standards for Grading Specimens of Writing in Grade VIII . 106 

Instructions for Presenting Book I . 109 

Instructions for Presenting Book II . 128 

Instructions for Presenting Book III . 145 

Instructions for Presenting Book IV . 157 

Instructions for Presenting Book V . 176 

Instructions for Presenting Book VI . 192 

Instructions for Presenting Book VII. 211 


PART V 

Penmanship for High Schools and Colleges . 231 

Schedule for First Semester . 233 

Elaborated Schedule. 233 

Standards of Speed . 234 

Beginning of Mere Movement Drills, Lesson 1 . 234 

Beginning of Capital Letters, Lesson 11 . 240 

Beginning of Small Letter Movement Drills, Lesson 38 255 

Schedule for Second Semester. 273 

Elaborated Schedule. 274 

Beginning of Mere Movement Drills, Lesson 1 . 275 

Beginning of Capital Letter Movement Drills, Lesson 11 281 

Beginning of Small Letter Movement Drills, Lesson 26 290 

Beginning of Signatures, Lesson 36 296 

Beginning of Body Writing, Lesson 51 . 301 

























































































% 


































•/ 




























































PART I 


GENERAL DISCUSSIONS 

This section is devoted to psychological, physiological and peda¬ 
gogical discussions of teaching plain penmanship. It is believed 
that these discussions invade fields and present phases of the sub¬ 
ject that give it a new setting. A critical study of the chapters of 
this section is invited and it is confidently believed that the earnest 
student will find himself well repaid for the time and effort so 
spent. 








THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


THE TEACHER'S PREPARATION 

Teaching involves the principles of salesmanship. As in sales¬ 
manship one cannot be said to have sold until some one has 
bought, so in teaching one cannot be said to have taught until 
some one has learned. A person may stand behind a counter 
and wait upon customers who come to purchase without being a 
salesman; and so may one sit behind a teacher’s desk and call 
the classes designated on the program without being a teacher. 

Teaching implies being taught—learning. Common school teach¬ 
ing, involving as it does many subjects, implies that pupils are 
learning many subjects. That these rules eliminate penmanship 
from the general scope of teaching is indisputable when one ex¬ 
amines the writing of the average public school graduate. These 
pupils have not been taught penmanship, otherwise they would 
have learned it—have it in possession, just as they would have 
possessed an article of merchandise had it been sold to them. 
Merely offering merchandise or displaying it to the public is not 
salesmanship; neither is offering the subjects of the school 
curriculum to pupils, teaching. 

Teaching implies the creation of a special environment about a 
pupil and bringing the pupil into such a relation with that environ¬ 
ment that he will find his interest aroused in and feel an impulse 
to attempt to grasp a given subject. Unless this special atmosphere 
can be created the pupil will be unresponsive. The work required 
to create this atmosphere, or environment, varies with individuals, 
due to the disposition, knowledge, habits and ambitions which the 
pupil brings into the problem. 

The teacher cannot create the atmosphere, or environment, nec¬ 
essary to the performance of teaching, out of nothing. It can only 
be created out of the disposition, knowledge, habits and ambition 
of the teacher himself. These imply preparation. The disposition 
must be amiable, patient, constant, energetic. The knowledge must 
be specific. It must embody a knowledge of the details of perfect 
script forms; of the position of the body at the desk and of holding 


the pencil or pen; of the proper order in which to present the ele¬ 
ments of the subject; of the value of visual impressions; of the 
importance of rhythm; of the effect of interest; of the method 
of developing writing movements; of the nature and necessity of 
correct habits, and of the principles of constructive criticism. The 
habits must be correct and well fixed for doing work in an orderly 
manner; observing attractive arrangements, neatness and cleanli¬ 
ness ; making good script forms with correct proportions of height 
and with uniform spacing and slant; using the arm movement; 
counting with an energetic and stimulating voice; being on the 
floor among the pupils with encouraging glances, words and acts 
while they practice. The teacher’s ambition must be to see his 
energy, his ability, his knowledge, his disposition translated into 
his pupils. He must feel the same deep satisfaction in observ¬ 
ing the effectiveness of his teaching that the salesman feels in 
making important sales; the gunner on the battleship in hitting 
his target; the runner in winning his race. He must feel emo¬ 
tions of zeal and pride in his success as measured by the progress 
of his pupils. 

The importance of preparation for the teacher who is to be 
able to create the true educational environment is all-important. 
It is natural to no one. That some have great advantages over 
others by virtue of early environment and training is indeed true, 
but each teacher is virtually only what he has created himself to 
be. Nature bestows few if any gifts. 

The first great need of the teacher is the realization of the need 
of preparation; the second is the realization of the kind of prep¬ 
aration needed, and the third is the need of patient, energetic, 
systematic, painstaking, persistent effort to make the necessary 
preparation. A teacher possessed of such a realization and dis¬ 
position will inevitably teach writing so as to attain gratifying 
results. 

Merely reading theories or listening to lectures on teaching the 
subject will never suffice to make a successful teacher of penman- 


14 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


ship. The teacher must pass through the several phases of prac¬ 
tice in conjunction with the study of the subject matter to under¬ 
stand the nature and value of the elements involved; and must 
have sufficient ability to demonstrate to the pupils by illustrations 
on the blackboard and on paper how the execution of good pen¬ 
manship is accomplished. When the pupil says, “Show me,” the 
teacher has come face to face with the supreme opportunity. A 
skillful performance at this time will arouse almost undying in¬ 
terest in the pupil. Evex-y successful teacher must realize that 
teaching is an art, the greatest of arts, and an art to be learned 
by thinking and by practice. 

WRITING AS A DUAL VALUE SUBJECT 

There is an old adage which says: “The greatest invention of 
man is speech; the most useful is writing.” Perhaps this is not 
so accurate as it would be to say that speech is the most useful 
as well as the greatest invention of man. It is, however, wholly 
true that writing is second to speech both in the greatness of the 
invention and in its usefulness. An outstanding fact, which many 
teachers do not recognize, is that speech; that is, the command 
of language—accurate, comprehensive language, is very generally 
an accurate gxxage of a person’s general ability. Teachers who 
have carefully observed this fact are aware that pupils who are 
proficient in language; those who read well; that is, those who 
have such a knowledge of words as to be able to interpret ac¬ 
curately the meaning of the author they read, usually rank high¬ 
est in their other subjects. Mathematics teachers will often find 
that the trouble with their pupils is not that they cannot under¬ 
stand mathematics, but that they do not understand English. The 
same trouble is very noticeable in science, in history and in lit¬ 
erature classes. 

This must be true because language is a fundamental requisite 
in every subject. It is the one necessary tool wherewith results 
may be wrought in other undertakings. Pupils who have had 
adequate training in language, whether at home or in school, 
have, the while, received training in clear and accurate thinking, 
in system, and in pride in accomplishment. They understand what 
they read and hear, and say wha,t they mean. Language is, in 


fact, in their hands a tool of high,quality, and is, at the same time, 
a high quality tool in trained hands because it is in the hands of 
one who knows how to use such a tool. This combination, as a 
general rule, makes such a person rank high in all his under¬ 
takings. 

What is true of speech is true, in a slightly less degree, of 
writing. The accuracy of form; the fineness of line quality; the 
precise co-ordination of nerve and muscle and mind; the sense of 
pride in producing something pleasing or beautifixl; the lessons in 
application and concentration that ever must accompany learning 
to write well; the consciousness of becoming a master; of becom¬ 
ing somewhat distinguished for skill among his associates; of pos¬ 
sessing a refined tool, all contribute toward making the pupil 
who masters penmanship to a satisfactory degree one of higher 
than ordinary rank in general ability. 

Writing, as an art in itself, is worth all the time and effort re¬ 
quired to master it; but its value is enhanced beyond estimate 
when it is considered in its dual aspect of a fine art and a tool 
in working with all other educational subjects. In this latter 
aspect penmanship holds a position altogether like that of lan¬ 
guage, as already mentioned; viz., that pupils or students who are 
good penmen are, as a general rule, good in other subjects. This, 
as with language, must be true, because, under such circumstances, 
it is a case of a high quality tool being used by one who has been 
trained to handle such a tool. 

Teachers very often fail to see the need for good penmanship 
because they are altogether accustomed to poor penmanship and 
have made a complete adjustment of themselves to poor writing. 
They are like our forebears who were adjusted to poor artificial 
light. That they coixld accomplish so little by such light, did not 
cause them to complain of that light. But now that we have be¬ 
come accustomed to good light, we think it incomprehensible that 
anyone could ever have gotten along without it. We realize now 
how much we owe to our superior light, and how much the world 
has gained in the hours that have been added to the day by its 
means. 

Countless thousands of teachers do not realize how much more 
effective work might be done in mathematics, history, geography, 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


15 


civics, science, and all subjects, were the pupils properly trained 
in language. They often observe that the children who come from 
families where the foundation for good language is laid securely 
in earliest infancy and fostered properly through early childhood, 
are bright and apt, and rank high in all their subjects; but they 
do not realize that language, and the training that of necessity 
accompanied the learning of language in the manner in which 
it was learned, is the one largest element in accounting for the 
pupil’s superiority. It is in general true that one may judge a 
pupil’s capabilities by his vocabulary. It is still more generally 
true that those who have very limited vocabularies and are of low 
rank in language, are practically uniformly of low rank in all 
other subjects, and their improvement in other subjects is 
measured by their improvement in language. 

General as is the practice of underestimating the value of good 
language as a tool in handling other subjects, the practice of 
underestimating the value of good penmanship is incalculably 
more so. Not one teacher in hundreds seems to have ever con¬ 
sidered good writing from this viewpoint. Having seen none of it 
either in the schools they have attended or taught, they do not 
appreciate any of its real benefits. Their only complaint is heard 
when the writing is so poor as to pass into the realm of the un¬ 
intelligible. They have progressed so far as to know that in¬ 
correct verbs and pronouns are reprehensible, and strive, each 
after his own manner, to inculcate something of correct theory in 
language; but poor penmanship means nothing more than a pupil’s 
misfortune, which it is none of their responsibility to remedy. 

Teachers do not realize that it is possible for all normal pupils 
and students to write hands that are as legible as print; that can 
be written with rapidity and ease; that can be reduced to a prac¬ 
tice as habitual as using a knife or fork; and which, like using 
the knife and fork, may vary according to an indefinite gradation 
of standards. It seems not to be clearly impressed upon teachers’ 
minds that there is a great saving of time and energy both on the 
part of the pupils and teachers in good penmanship. A pupil who 
has been properly trained in penmanship is able to write from two 
to four times as rapidly as is possible for one who has not had 
such training. The proportion of energy required in the two cases 


shows a still greater contrast, since the pupil who has been prop¬ 
erly trained has formed a habit of writing well, and habits are 
largely unconscious actions. The time and annoyance saved the 
teacher in reading manuscripts in good penmanship are, likewise, 
from two to four fold, over that of struggling through the illegible 
scrawls of untrained pupils. 

The best organized schools must in ever larger degree stress 
language and penmanship as the two fundamental subjects that 
should have first consideration, because they must realize, more 
and more, that these are the daily and life-long tools wherewith 
all subjects are handled. Given a good language habit and a good 
writing habit, practically no child would fail to gain a good gen¬ 
eral education even if deprived of routine schooling. Lacking in 
these, it seems safe to say, no one can make progress educationally. 
That penmanship has not been given its proper consideration is 
due to the fact that it has proved, poor as has been its quality, 
in a way sufficient, just as the sickle and the scythe seemed for 
ages sufficient. Deprive pupils utterly of writing and the im¬ 
portance of the subject comes home with a crushing weight. 

THE QUESTION OF IMITATION AND INDIVIDUALITY 

The first step in any art is imitation. Without imitation no 
child can make a beginning. This imitative process carries the 
child into the realm of form-building and enables him to construct 
a foundation upon which he may later stand and begin to form 
judgments and concepts of his own. To arrive at a truly pedagogic 
conclusion in this subject one must commence considering the 
child before it has had its first impression of an art form, and 
also as it receives its first impulse to imitate a form. This child 
may, of course, receive any one of countless form impressions. 
It may also have the same images repeatedly stamped upon its 
mind as it commences to imitate these forms. As it strives to 
express the mental pictures it has received it, of course, com¬ 
mences to reproduce form, and the form it tries to reproduce is 
one of the impressions of form it has received. 

At this beginning in art the child is, very generally, permitted 
to receive its impressions of form unaided. This is the first and 
most general cause of poor penmanship among school children. 



16 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


Having no adequate foundation upon which to stand in forming 
concepts, making comparisons and formulating judgments, and 
undertaking at the same time to reproduce its impressions, it 
must, in its first attempts, inevitably make the forms incorrectly. 
Having made a form, or having attempted to do so, it receives an 
impression from the form it has produced that is more definite 
and lasting than the impression it has previously received from 
merely looking at a form. In the large majority of cases the 
child muddles its way into the mysteries of form-building by this 
process, expressing a very crude form because it has never con¬ 
ceived a better one, and re-impressing that crude form upon its 
mind repeatedly. 

This crude form at last becomes the child’s everyday tool in 
all his studies that require writing, and those who are ignorant of 
the process by which the child created this crude tool are in¬ 
stantly ready to say that it is his “individuality.” It would be 
equally wise to say that crooked spines, stooped shoulders, pigeon 
toes, or slovenliness, carelessness, and general ignorance in all 
subjects are his “individuality,” because his plane of action in all 
lines would be as crude as is his writing if he were taught in the 
other subjects in a like crude manner. 

No one who has mastered the elements of good penmanship, 
even to a fair degree, has ever claimed that the miserable scrawl 
that is produced by the average school boy or girl and school 
teacher, and called writing, is poor because it “expresses his or 
her individuality.” Such groundless statements can come only 
from those who are ignorant of the psychology of learning art. 

The fact is that individuality becomes more and more fully ex¬ 
pressed as the instrument of expression becomes more and more 
perfect. To express any idea there must be an instrument ade¬ 
quate to the purpose. The most highly trained musician, artist, 
sculptor, scientist, penman expresses his individuality most fully. 
Without improving the means of expression we should all be 
boors, just as the poor writer is to that extent a boor; just as all 
who are ignorant of literature, of art, of music, of science, of 
history, of all the products of cultivation and civilization are, to 
the extent of their ignorance, boors. 

Good penmanship awakens pride in doing because it affords a 


means of expressing skill; it improves the sense of order because 
it furnishes the implement for demonstrating arrangement; it 
cultivates the appreciation of the beautiful because it is itself 
the embodiment of beauty; it stimulates interest in all other edu¬ 
cational subjects in handling which it may become the individual’s 
tool. 

It has been demonstrated repeatedly by innumerable surveys 
that pupils who are best in penmanship are nearly uniformly best 
in their otlf'er subjects. This must ever be true since writing is a 
tool, and one working with a good tool, which he has learned to 
handle with skill, can create a better product than can be done 
with a poor tool in an untrained hand. This is true despite the 
success of the countless poor writers in all lines of human activity. 
These same individuals would doubtless have found a serious 
handicap removed had they been trained to write well in their 
early school life. It is indeed true that as much has been ad¬ 
mitted times without number. 

The child should be encouraged to imitate the best models and 
continue this process of imitation until he arrives at the time 
when he must begin to make application of his acquisition to the 
solution of his own problem. He will then re-shape, modify, adapt 
and eliminate as necessity requires until he has reduced his 
writing to a vehicle perfectly adapted to his needs. But he will 
retain the elements of legibility and beauty and the ease of execu¬ 
tion as he retains his habits of walking and handling his knife and 
fork. And like handling his knife and fork he may do so accord¬ 
ing to the standards of good usage or after the manner of the 
untrained, the uncouth, the ignorant. But the best penmanship 
provides the best means of expressing individuality just as the 
best manners and the best general education make the same pro¬ 
vision. Those who condemn good penmanship as lacking in in¬ 
dividuality must with the same reason also condemn good lan¬ 
guage, good manners and all human culture. 

PERMANENT RESULTS 

Perhaps the most serious problem that must be solved by the 
teacher of penmanship, especially in the grades, next to that of 
actually teaching the subject, is how to make the results become 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


17 


the permanent possession of the pupil. It is not difficult to make 
the subject carry over into the pupil’s other branches, because 
any skill attained can be required and secured in practically all 
the pupil’s writing; but to so develop the pupil as to largely 
eliminate the liability to relapse into former practices and habits 
is serious and difficult. 

The impressions and training received by pupils in the grades, 
being received during their tender years, will inevitably fade if 
not persisted in during the later years when their habits are be¬ 
coming finally fixed; that is, during the years when their natures 
are becoming less plastic. Good acquisitions as well as bad are 
often outgrown before the formative period of a pupil’s life is 
completed, because they are merely given a start and then allowed 
to shift and drift without direction or attention. 

There are two fundamental requirements in the process of in¬ 
fusing penmanship skill into the life of a boy or girl in such a 
manner as to make it a permanent asset; viz.: 

1. To persist in teaching the subject either as such or in 
correlation with other subjects throughout the pupil's or student’s 
school career. 

2. To arouse and crystallize in the pupil a well defined pride 
in doing things well. 

The first of these requirements can be fulfilled in any school or 
school system, if its importance is understood and considered at 
the time of re-shaping the policies of the school or school system. 
First of all, penmanship should be as properly and thoroughly 
taught in all the grades as are the other required subjects. Second, 
the pupil’s best penmanship should be required in all written work, 
and incorrect letter forms and careless or indifferent penmanship 
should be criticised as sharply as poor spelling, mistakes in sen¬ 
tence structure, wrong calculations or misstatements of facts. 
Such a correlation of penmanship with other subjects will in¬ 
evitably raise the standard of penmanship. The attitude toward 
handwriting should be the same as the attitude toward language 
and mistakes should be as assiduously corrected. It is universally 
recognized as good pedagogy to consider spelling and sentence 
structure in connection with all other subjects. The same rule 
should be applied to writing. 


The second requirement is much more difficult to achieve. 
Pupils are found to belong to two fairly well defined classes, with 
many shades bridging the gulf between them. These two classes 
are those who have a sense of pride in what they do, and those 
who do not have such a pride. The members of the former class 
are possessed of more or less clean cut ideals to which appeal 
can be made, and which prompt them to respond to appeals of 
beauty, cleanliness, order, arrangement and accuracy. Pupils in 
the latter class seem to be devoid of ideals and cannot be appealed 
to, but seem possessed of the notion that nothing is to be done ex¬ 
cept that which cannot be avoided, and that when vigilance is 
withdrawn pains need no longer be taken and effort may cease. 
This is the class that relapses into former habits of indifference 
and slovenliness as soon as the pressure that has pushed it to its 
present plane of achievement is no longer applied. In contemplating 
this class, which is unfortunately large, one is continually re¬ 
minded that the penmanship does not seem to carry over or main¬ 
tain itself through high school, in college, or in business. When 
pupils of this class are left to their own devices they make no 
effort beyond the minimum. In writing a theme they lose sight 
of spelling, penmanship and any other element not emphatically re¬ 
quired in the task. All elementary development through which 
such pupils may have passed in their earlier school life seems soon 
to pass into oblivion. Apparently nothing short of the incessant 
watchfulness of an ever-present teacher is sufficient to hold them 
to maximum effort. This, of course, cannot be provided. The only 
other recourse is to establish in the pupil a spirit of pride in doing 
his best; in superior achievement; in feeling a delight in pro¬ 
ducing something that bears the stamp of excellence. Such a 
sense once awakened will be a constant stimulus in his life, and 
will grow with time and effort. It will be a quickening light in 
his life by which the sense of skill will be illumined and magni¬ 
fied, and which will impel the ideal to push through into ex¬ 
pression as a reality. Any pupil will be safe once an adequate 
pride in personal achievement has been awakened in him. No 
pupil is safe without it, for without it carelessness, slovenliness, 
indifference will flourish in him like weeds in a foul field and 
will choke out everything worth while. 



18 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


Pupils in whom the proper pride in personal achievement has 
been awakened will reflect it in all they do. They will show it in 
their personal appearance; in their manners; in their attitude 
toward others; in their home work; in their gardens; in their 
fields; in their play. One who does things well feels a pleasure 
in what he does; one who feels a pleasure in what he does tends 
to do things well. Once awaken in a pupil adequate pride in per¬ 
sonal achievement and whatever skill he may have acquired in 
penmanship will be maintained and will be constantly refined. 
Fail to do this and he will move forward only as long as he is 
being pushed. Withdraw the impelling force and like a member 
of a herd he will relapse into his former practices and habits 
almost immediately. To awaken adequate pride in personal 
achievement is fundamental to all real progress, and is one of the 
most serious problems in the school room. 


SLANT IN ARM MOVEMENT WRITING 

Slant in writing, when done with the arm movement, is de¬ 
termined physiologically, and must, therefore, vary with indi¬ 
viduals. The variations cover only a few degrees but since they 
admit of scientific explanation they should be considered. Slant, 
in writing done with the arm movement, is due to (a) the rela¬ 
tive lengths of the bones in the upper and forearms; (b) the 
relative distances between the points where the muscles operating 
these bones are attached and the ends of the bones, and (c) the 
angles of the muscles to the bones which they operate. In other 
words, slant in arm movement writing is a mere matter of me¬ 
chanics, being governed by the laws of levers, as shown in the 
accompanying illustration. 

In the illustration A and B represents the fore- and upper-arm 
bones, respectively. The relative length of these bones constitute 










THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


19 


the first factor mentioned in the foregoing paragraph as de¬ 
termining slant in arm movement writing. The lines C, D, E and 
F represent muscles. The relative distances between the points 
at which these muscles are attached to the hones and the ends 
of the bones constitute the second factor in determining slant in 
arm movement writing. The “swells” in the upper-arm and in the 
forearm determine the angles of the muscles (which pass over 
these swells) to the bones to which they are attached. These 
angles of muscles to bones constitute the third factor in deter¬ 
mining slant in arm movement writing. 

Explanation of the Illustration 

When the muscle E is contracted the upper-arm is drawn for¬ 
ward, moving the forearm with it. Simultaneously, according to 
physiological law, (when the other muscles are permitted to act 
automatically) the muscle D is also contracted, drawing the fore¬ 
arm outward (right arm). This simultaneous movement of the 
upper-arm forward and the forearm forward and outward causes 
the pen in the hand to pass from 1 to 2, .thus not only making the 
necessary movement for height but also carrying the pen toward 
the right for making the necessary spacing along the writing line. 
Following this, when the muscle F is contracted, drawing the 
upper and forearm backward, the muscle C simultaneously con¬ 
tracts automatically, drawing the hand with the pen toward the 
left as it moves backward, bringing the pen to the point 3. This 
compound action causes the pen to be carried across the page in 
a ratchet form of movement. If the muscles of the forearm are 
held in a relaxed state and stress placed merely on the muscles of 
the upper-arm, thus allowing the muscles in the foiearm to act 
automatically, the hand will be carried entirely across the page 
without conscious effort. This may be tested by placing the arm 
in the correct writing position with the pen at the left side of 
the paper and then, closing the eyes, producing the forward-back- 
ward movements in the upper-arm and allowing the forearm to 
act automatically as explained. The result will be that the hand 
will be carried across the page. 

The reason the downward movements or strokes slant less than 
the upward movements or strokes is due wholly to the physiolog¬ 


ical structure of the arm ; that is, to the lever elements in the 
upper and forearm (the angles of muscles to bones, and the dis¬ 
tances from points at which the muscles are attached to the ends 
of the bones). Training of the arm movement involves the ability 
to make movements of a given length and to make the draw-back 
movements correspond exactly with the forward movements. That 
the slant is irregular in beginning with the arm movement is. due 
to irregularity in impulses given to the muscles in the upper-arm 
and interference with automatic simultaneous action in the mus¬ 
cles of the forearm. Perfect relaxation of the muscles of the 
forearm promotes uniformity of slant. 

While the physiological and mechanical laws that govern slant 
in arm movement writing are fixed, the slant may, nevertheless, 
be easily modified or disturbed by irregular or spasmodic effort, 
made either consciously or unconsciously, and also by at least 
four modifications of position, and one of movement; viz.: 

1. If the angle at the elbow is too obtuse or too acute. 

2. If the hand is bent toward the right or left at the wrist. 

3. If the hand is tilted more than is required to relax the mus¬ 
cles. 

4. If the elbow is placed too far forward or too far back. 

5. If more or less finger movement is mixed with the arm move¬ 
ment. 

The five modifications of position affect the slant of writing in 
the following described manner: 

The angle formed by the forearm and upper-arm may vary about 
twenty degrees either way from the right angle before any appre¬ 
ciable effect in the slant of the writing is noticeable. That is to 
say, if the forearm is placed at the middle of a sheet of paper S y 2 
inches wide, so as to form a right angle at the elbow, the hand may 
be moved from one side of the paper to the other without making 
the angle at the elbow sufficiently obtuse or acute to modify the 
slant appreciably. There is, of course, a very slight modification 
of slant noticeable in free, rapid arm movement writing within the 
angle limits described, but it is negligible. As the writing field 
approaches or extends beyond the forty degree limit (twenty 
degrees on either side of the right angle) the slant shows more 
marked modification. 



20 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


Bending the wrist toward the right or left has the effect of 
emphasizing or off-setting the natural slant as determined by the 
structure of the arm. If the wrist is bent toward the left the 
slant will approach the perpendicular; if it is bent toward the 
right the writing will be inclined more toward the right. The 
wrist and hand should be straight with the forearm. 

The wrist and fore-arm should, with the entire body, be kept as 
fully relaxed as possible in all penmanship practice. This relaxa¬ 
tion will cause the hand to tip away from the body somewhat. The 
natural, physiological slant of the individual’s writing takes into 
account this relaxed and somewhat tilted position of the hand and 
wrist; but when they are inclined more or less than the position 
established by perfect relaxation, the slant will be more or less 
modified. If the wrist is held level or tipped toward the body, 
the slant will approach the perpendicular; if it is tilted excessively 
away from the body the writing will be more inclined toward the 
right. 

If the elbow is placed so far forward that the arm becomes 
straight there will be no slant at all, and the arm movement with 
the arm in this position will produce only perpendicular lines. It 
follows that placing the elbow forward to any degree from a line 
straight with the front of the body (where it should be placed in 
practicing penmanship) must have a tendency to make the slant 
of arm movement writing approach the perpendicular. Conversely, 
if the elbow is placed backward from the correct position the 
effect in arm movement writing will be to increase the inclination 
of the letters toward the right. 

The introduction of finger movement, of course, removes the 
subject from the field of true arm movement writing, but as 
it is very common to employ more or less finger movement with 
the arm movement, it is well to note its effect on slant. All ad¬ 
mixture of the finger movement with the arm movement tends 
to make the writing approach the perpendicular. This is because 
the natural and simply action of the fingers, when pressing 
against each other, as in holding the pen, is forward-backward, 
and not sidewise. 

From this discussion it is clear that to discover an individual’s 
natural slant in arm movement writing, and to develop the use 


of it into a habit, the position and movement must always be 
correct. It is well known to all who have mastered a good arm 
movement handwriting that with increased experience, and the 
consequent fixedness of correct habits, the modifying influences 
become less and less annoying. Expert penmen apparently are 
able to ignore all laws and become laws unto themselves, just as 
do expert performers in music and with various mechanical de¬ 
vices. With beginners, however, the wise teacher will adhere to 
the known rules and laws with conscientious exactness. 

NOTE. These explanations of slant in writing refer wholly to 
right-handed persons. If the left hand is used some of the ex¬ 
planations must be reversed and some are not applicable at all. 

HEIGHT IN ARM MOVEMENT WRITING 

Height, like slant, in arm movement writing is governed physi¬ 
ologically, or mechanically, by the laws of levers. Like slant, it 
varies within very narrow limits, except in isolated extreme cases. 
When the elements of correct position are observed and a well 
developed arm movement is used the writing will be uniform at a 
given size, characteristic of the writer. This size will be modified 
in the same way and by the same causes that modify slant, as ex¬ 
plained under the head, Slant in Writing. A correct position is of 
first importance, and teachers who succeed best will attach most 
importance to the elements of good position. 

The modifications of the position of the arm that make the 
slant of arm movement writing approach the perpendicular, also 
have the effect of increasing the size of the writing; and those 
modifications which result in making the writing slant more have 
the effect of reducing the size of arm movement writing. Much 
irregularity in the size and slant noticeable in the writing of some 
pupils is caused by carelessness in position, especially of the 
writing arm. Every effort should be made to impress upon pupils 
the necessity of assuming the correct position every time they 
undertake to write, until at last this is done unconsciously. They 
must come to realize that individual natural size in arm movement 
writing, being a mechanical effect produced according to the laws 
of levers, can result only when all the elements of the arm move- 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


21 


ment machinery are employed without restraint, friction or modi¬ 
fication. 

There are, of course, deep-seated psychological causes beneath 
the mechanics of slant and height in arm movement writing. 
These psychological causes are absolutely fundamental in that 
they are structural causes in producing the machinery employed 
in writing. It is, therefore, safe to assume that the slant, height 
and spacing employed by an individual in correct arm movement 
writing are not only the natural effect of the mechanical action of 
the arm, but reflect the personality of the writer. 

Spacing in Arm Movement Writing 

A careful study of the explanations of Slant in Arm Movement 
Writing, as given under that title, will reveal the mechanical cause 
of spacing in arm movement writing. There is a natural in¬ 
dividual spacing the same as a natural slant and size in writing 
and the same as a natural length of step in walking, and the best 
results are secured when the correct requirements of position are 
adhered to and a sufficient amount of practicing is done to dis¬ 
close the individual’s natural slant, size and spacing, and to 
establish them in habit. 

LEFT-HANDED WRITERS 

It is unfortunate for any one to be left-handed in writing for 
three reasons; viz., (a) All school and office devices, appliances 
and arrangements are made for right-handed persons, (b) It is 
contrary to the mechanics of the writing movements to slant the 
writing in any direction except the direction in which the writing 
progresses, (c) It is contrary to the mechanics of the writing 
movements to make the writing progress toward the body. The 
physiological structure of the arm and hand are such that writing 
movements should be away from the body. Since writing proceeds 
from left to right the movements of the right hand and arm are 
physiologically and mechanically adapted to writing, and the 
movements of the left hand and arm are physiologically and 
mechanically opposed to writing. If left-handed persons should 
commence at the right side of the page and progress and slant the 
writing toward the left; that is, away from the body, the left 


hand and arm would be adapted to writing. This, of course, can¬ 
not be done, and left-handed persons are thus badly handicapped 
in learning to write. Due to the laws of mechanics and the 
physiological structure of the hand and arm left-handed persons 
cannot take advantage of automatic arm movements and cannot 
practice penmanship with the writing muscles as fully relaxed as 
is the case with right-handed persons. 

A good test of the adaptability of the right hand and arm and 
of the non-adaptability of the left hand and arm to writing may 
be made as follows: Take the correct position for writing, close 
the eyes and with the writing muscles perfectly relaxed and as 
limp as possible, retrace up and down rapidly on what will seem 
to be a straight line. Upon opening the eyes it will be found that 
for right-handed persons the pen moved gradually toward the 
right and for left-handed persons it moved gradually toward the 
left instead of retracing one line. This is due to the automatic 
arm movements determined by the physiological structure of the 
arm, and proves conclusively that writing is mechanically and 
physiologically a right-handed performance. (NOTE. It is nec¬ 
essary that the writing muscles be fully relaxed in the test re¬ 
ferred to, to show its full significance.) 

The best authorities (who are authorities by right of long actual 
teaching experience as experts in penmanship) agree that every 
effort should be made to change all children who have a disposi¬ 
tion to use their left hands in writing to the right-handed habit, 
at least up to the fourth grade. Above this grade it is question¬ 
able whether the change can be made to advantage. In most cases 
children soon learn to write with their right hands but continue 
to be left-handed in all other acts. This may be found advan¬ 
tageous rather than otherwise, since there is doubtless more to be 
said for than against ambidextrousness. Those who have psych¬ 
ological fears in changing children from left- to right-handedness 
might allay their fears by considering the fact that making such 
a change usually does not result in changing the child wholly from 
left- to right-handedness, but leaves him almost wholly left-handed, 
developing merely enough of the right-handed faculties to 
strengthen him, and not in any way weakening him, as some teach¬ 
ers erroneously suspect. 



22 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


The author has brought about almost innumerable changes from 
using the left to using the right hand in writing among his pupils, 
some even rather late in life, and has never seen any but good 
and justifiable results coming from such changes. As far as his 
knowledge extends none of the changes resulted in making the 
individuals wholly right-handed. 

REAL AND APPARENT RETROGRESSION 

Practically everyone at some time experiences the feeling that 
his writing has deteriorated. This is a matter that requires care¬ 
ful examination to determine to what extent it is real and in how 
far it is only apparent. Absolute perfection in penmanship, as in 
everything else, is impossible of attainment, and the nearness of 
approach to perfection made by any individual in his work will 
seem near or far according to the perception of the judge. Many 
persons, having only a very vague and indefinite appreciation of 
perfect letter forms, hastily appraise all writing that embodies a 
fair degree of accuracy and that is perfectly legible as “almost 
perfect.” When a person of this class undertakes the practice and 
study of penmanship under competent guidance, his concepts of 
form undergo rapid transformation with the result that an ever 
widening gulf is placed between his ability to execute and his 
concept. His natural notation is that his writing, falling ever 
farther and farther in arrears of his rapidly advancing concept, 
appears to him to be deteriorating. The actual status of his case 
is, perhaps, that he is making real progress but that his concept 
is advancing more rapidly than is his ability to execute, and his 
skill is therefore apparently retrograding. 

This improvement in concept or the ability to judge form is 
more or less constant with mental growth, whether one is studying 
penmanship or not. Often in retrospect one remembers his own 
or another’s writing, judged in the light of the concepts held at 
that time, and, failing to appreciate that there has been improve¬ 
ment in concept, compares equally good or perhaps better writing 
of his own or others at the present time with present day concepts 
and concludes that there is actual deterioration. The fallacy lies 
in not taking into account the improvement in concept, which is 
constant, and is continually forming a new basis of comparison 


between concept and skill in execution, while the skill may be 
stationary or improving more slowly than the concept. 

There is, however, real deterioration or demoralization notice¬ 
able in the writing of most persons at certain stages in a well 
organized course or under certain conditions. The average quality 
of the gross output of one’s writing reflects his writing habit and 
this habit is subject to constant modification in the direction of 
practice. If a person does considerable writing and writes poorly, 
he will, in time, habituate himself to such a style. This is merely 
a matter of progressing in the direction of least resistance, de¬ 
termined by the requirements of one’s occupation or lack of con¬ 
cern and decision or perhaps a combination of these. 

The rate of deterioration of one’s writing under such circum¬ 
stances, as suggested in the preceding paragraph, is determined by 
two factors; viz., (a) the degree of fixedness of the style before 
the process of deterioration commences; and (b) the disregard 
with which the deterioration is permitted to advance. In all the 
activities of life, those whose habits are most firmly fixed and 
who exercise the most constant concern over their acts best main¬ 
tain their standards, and often show improvement under condi¬ 
tions which for others result in retrogression. This is noticeable 
in practically every school or school system. Pupils yield to stress 
and instead of increasing the effort, as is necessary to maintain 
the quality, they often sacrifice the quality. 

If high standards in writing are to be established and made at¬ 
tractive it is necessary that teachers familiarize themselves with 
the details of perfect letter forms so their judgments may be re¬ 
liable and constant, and so they may always judge by fixed 
standards and always on the basis of approximate perfection. 
Teachers who are so equipped will not find their judgments vary¬ 
ing from time to time, but to them their own and others’ writing 
will be a determinable variant of a known ultimate which is kept 
constantly in view. 

Persons who do not have clear concepts of perfect letters and 
who, in consequence of this deficiency, are unable to judge re¬ 
liably of letter values, and who, also, on this account, are not able 
to judge reliably whether there has been an actual deterioration 
of writing quality, or only an apparent deterioration, are, ob- 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


23 


viously, not altogether safe guides in this subject. It is possible 
to learn to conceive perfect letter forms without being able to 
execute them, and every teacher should consider it incumbent upon 
himself to at least acquire this knowledge. Good concepts are 
necessary to make writing accurate, just as good movement is 
necessary to make writing easy. 

It is of great value to be able to explain to a pupil the true 
value of his writing judged by an invariable standard, and it is 
important to him to be able to give him reliable information as 
to whether his writing is actually improving, remaining stationary 
or deteriorating; or is to him or others only apparently doing one 
of these. Uncertainty, guessing, lack of uniformity of style, or 
indefiniteness are as fatal to successful work in teaching writing 
as in teaching arithmetic, geography or history. 


RESERVE POWER AND SCOPE OF MOVEMENT 

The scope and also the reserve power in the arm movement re¬ 
quired to produce good penmanship easily, rapidly and con¬ 
tinuously without undue fatigue, admits of such a clear and com¬ 
plete explanation and demonstration as to make it one of the 
most interesting and valuable phases of penmanship pedagogy. 
That it is new and not mentioned in the many books pertaining to 
penmanship now on the market does not detract from its im¬ 
portance—an importance which may be proved by any painstaking 
and earnest student. 

The accompanying illustration should be studied in connection 
with these explanations until all its elements are clearly under¬ 
stood. A clear understanding of this problem will be found very 
valuable in teaching penmanship in all grades where the arm 




























24 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


movement is taught, and those who are endeavoring to master the 
subject on their own account will find it one of the most im¬ 
portant considerations connected with the whole subject. 

The usual width of paper for penmanship practice is eight 
and one-half inches. The customary width of margins allowed at 
the sides is one-half inch. This leaves a writing line of seven and 
one-half inches. With the fore-arm of the writing arm placed at 
the middle of the paper, parallel with the edges of the paper and 
at right angles to the ruled lines, the hand should be able to 
swing right and left far enough to bring the pen to the two ex¬ 
tremities of the writing line. In making this swing the movement 
of the pen describes a curve, which must, in writing, be trans¬ 
formed into a straight line. To eliminate the curve and enable 
the pen to travel in a straight line, a compound movement is 
necessary. While the movement proceeds from the extreme left 
toward the middle of the line, the muscles must be gradually con¬ 
tracted as the pen approaches the middle of the page. Passing the 
middle and proceeding toward the right end of the line, the 
muscles must be gradually extended to permit the pen to continue 
its course in a straight line. The distance through which the 
movement must be contracted as the pen traverses the first half 
of the line is indicated by the upper curved line (A) in the 
illustration. It will be seen that the outer point in the arc (X) is 
two spaces of ordinary ruling above the line which connects the 
two extremities of the curved line. This demonstrates that the 
movement must be contracted through the distance of two ruled 
spaces as the pen approaches the middle of the line in traveling 
along in a straight line across the page. It is thus demonstrated 
that by maintaining a single position of the arm and paper and 
using a two-space movement, a straight line seven and one-half 
inches in length can be drawn. 

Since it is impossible to make the letters occupy merely a 
straight line, the next consideration is to provide sufficient space 
to accommodate the letters to be made. The longest letters are 
f, J, Y and Z, and the space that is wide enough to admit these 
must, of course, be sufficient for all the letters. The available 
writing space must, then, be of the required dimensions to admit 
of placing the letters mentioned at all points of the writing line. 


In other words, it must be possible to erect a parallelogram be¬ 
tween the outer and inner limits of the movement of a width suf¬ 
ficient to admit of the longest letters. 

It will be seen that the inner limit of the movement must be 
pushed back to the curved line (B). This demands that the 
movement be extended over four ruled spaces, and with such a 
scope of movement it will be seen that the pen may play over a 
parallelogram that is seven and one-half inches in length and two 
ruled spaces in width. This field of movement will enable one to 
write on all parts of the line without shifting the position of the 
arm or paper, but provides for no reserve in scope or movement 
power. This, it will be readily understood, is not conducive to 
entire ease in writing a full line without changing the position 
of the arm or paper. 

Ease of action is determined by reserve power. One who has 
merely sufficient strength or power to perform a given feat can¬ 
not perform that feat with the same grace, accuracy and ease that 
is commanded by one who has ample reserve. It is the reserve 
that gives the touch of quality. The reserve of arm movement 
power is always the surplus above that which is actually re¬ 
quired to execute the letters. It follows, therefore, that to be able 
to write any of the letters on all parts of a line seven and one-half 
inches in length without changing the position, and do so with ease, 
one must have a movement that will cover about five spaces, or 
one space more than designated in the illustration. 

The best penmen have the greatest supply of reserve movement 
power. The poorest writers are the most limited in this respect. 
In finger movement reserve power is wholly lacking. Any degree 
of usable movement is an addition to the reserve power, and the 
great work in learning penmanship lies in creating sufficient re¬ 
serve power to meet every requirement in executing all the letters 
accurately, easily, rapidly and continuously, without fatigue. The 
author’s scope of movement is more than eight spaces, which 
enables him to write in a straight line about twelve inches. This 
extra length of line has no special value, but the reserve power 
which it manifests is priceless in the execution of expert penman¬ 
ship. 

The development of scope of movement and reserve power must 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


25 


be a gradual accomplishment. In the fourth grade, where the arm 
movement is first undertaken, the two space oval is sufficient. 
This is usually also all that can be developed in the fifth grade to 
advantage, and may be the limit for the sixth grade, but extra 
effort should be made in the sixth to add an extra space to the 
movement. In the seventh and eighth grades the three space 
oval should be required, while in high school and college classes 
the movement should be developed to cover four or five spaces. 
The movement that has sufficient scope, and, consequently, suf¬ 
ficient reserve power, will give the possessor the ability to write 
in a manner that will be the marvel of observers. This power is 
attainable by practically all normally constituted persons. That 
it is acquired by so few is due wholly to the fact that its value 
is not appreciated and the process of developing it is not under¬ 
stood. The most successful penmanship teachers are those who 
see the importance of training the movement to the point where 
the fullest possible reserve power, scope and smoothness are made 
available. 


CLASS DRILLS 


Penmanship practice should be largely individual work, each 
pupil being required to work out his own course to meet the re¬ 
quired standard; but life and spirit may easily be injected into 
a class practicing the arm movement by giving class drills. These 
general class drills should be limited to the first few minutes of 
the recitation, except when the class is commencing the mere 
movement work, when it may be continued throughout the writing 
period. The aim and purpose in these class or concert drills is 
to develop regularity or rhythm in the movement; to attain a suf¬ 
ficient speed to produce the desired habit-forming effect; to culti¬ 
vate the required lightness of touch; to maintain continuity, and 
to sustain interest. If these ends are not realized to an appre¬ 
ciable extent the time has been spent in vain, and may have been 
detrimental in that it may have been used by pupils to camouflage 
dilly-dallying and mere idleness. 


MERE MOVEMENT DRILLS 

Concert work should be attempted only with the use of proper 
subject matter. All the mere movement drills (compact, con¬ 


tinuous oval; compact, oblique straight line, and link oval), the 
capitals of Group I and practically all capitals that begin and 
end with down strokes are good material. Capitals that begin or 
end with up strokes are not well adapted to concert drills. 

To develop regularity or rhythm in the movement of pupils the 
best aid is the teacher’s voice employed in counting, if this be done 
with a well modulated, sharply accented, spirited, well timed 
voice. The count for all mere movement drills should be from 
one to ten and repeated, the counts being on the down strokes. In 
the compact, continuous oval, and in the compact, oblique straight 
line drills the repetition should be made without a break, so the 
pupils will keep up a continuous motion. In the link oval drill 
the count may be ten for each oval with sufficient pause to permit 
the pupil to pass to the next oval, or the count may be repeated 
once on the same oval, making twenty retraces for each oval. If 
the lines are sufficiently light they will dry as fast as made and 
will permit the oval to be retraced an indefinite number of times 
without producing a blurred or smeared effect. It is possible to 
retrace the link oval a hundred or more times if the line quality 
is perfect. 

CAPITAL LETTER DRILLS 


In using the capitals for class drills the count for the letters of 
Group I is one-two, for the two down strokes of the letter, or one 
to ten for the down strokes of five letters, and repeated. The N 
is made to the count of 3; the M to the count of four; the H to 
four; the K to four; the Q to three. The Z, X, W, V, Y and J, all 
ending with up strokes, are not well adapted to class drills. The 
count for U is three; for T four; for F five; for D three; for P 
two or ten; for R three; for L three. The S, G and I, commencing 
with up strokes, are not well adapted to counting or class drills, 
when made singly, but the G and S are excellent class drills when 
made as connected drills. In connected letter drills counting may 
be used to advantage, and all counts are best used on the down 
strokes. If counts are used on the up strokes and down strokes, 
the counts on down strokes should be accented and those on the up 
strokes should be unaccented. The counting should always be 
spirited, sharp and sufficiently rapid to require continuous and 
uniform motion. 




26 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


Music is also of some value in conducting concert drills, but is 
not as valuable as the teacher’s voice if the latter is properly 
used. In using music, care must be taken to use selections that 
have the proper time, suitable accentuation and sufficient speed. 
Music can be used to best advantage perhaps only in the mere 
movement drills, and in such letters as O and A which permit and 
require the pen to pass from the termination of one letter to the 
beginning point of the succeeding letter without the slightest break 
or hesitation. In practically all the other capitals there are re¬ 
quired inter-letter breaks in the movement, due to the changed 
direction of motion, which can be accommodated best and in most 
cases only by the counting method. 

SMALL LETTER DRILLS 

In taking up the small letter movement concert drills count¬ 
ing can be used to great advantage. The teacher must have a 
perfect understanding of the character and application of this 
phase of movement and must know how to develop it and be able 
to recognize it both in the true and in the corrupted forms as it 
may be used in the class. The count for small letter movement 
drills is characteristically different from that used in mere move¬ 
ment drills and in the capitals. Instead of being used for a con¬ 
tinuous glide in the movement it must now adapt itself as if to a 
walking motion — a series of successive steps, with a quick, sharp 
count for each step, but not in rapid succession. The transition 
from the mere movement or capital letter movement to the small 
letter movement may be likened to the performance of a skater in 
gliding across a pond and, coming to the shore, continuing on the 
land by instantly changing his movement to walking, In the 
connected 1 the count is ten — one count for each down stroke, and 
the time and character of the movement should be the same as in 
walking and not as in skating or gliding. In the joined lu drill 
the count is three—for the three down strokes of the two letters. 
In all small letters in which there are straight down strokes this 
characteristic small letter, or walking, form of movement should 
be used. In the oval small letters a miniature capital letter move¬ 
ment is required. The rule governing the small letter movement, 
given elsewhere in this text, should be strictly observed. 


WHAT DETERMINES GOOD LETTER FORMS 

The multiplicity of forms of the same script letters in use 
throughout the country has given wide currency to the belief that 
there is no scientific basis of accuracy in letter forms. It seems 
to be the universal notion that letter structure is only a matter of 
opinion, and that details of form are settled arbitrarily. These 
conclusions have an element of truth in them but in the main 
they are erroneous. It must be accepted that many, and perhaps 
most, of the forms presented in the published works on the sub¬ 
ject are arbitrary designs, because most of them have not been 
arrived at scientifically. 

Letter forms that are produced by an arm movement that has 
been developed to an extraordinary degree are remarkably similar 
in form, regardless of who may have produced them. The dif¬ 
ferences are chiefly matters of slant and height. The proportions, 
the kinds of curves and the general contour of the letters are in 
marked agreement among practically all the best penmen of the 
country. This must be true since the arm movement is purely 
mechanical in its operations and the forms produced by it when 
all its elements are working together in the most perfect harmony; 
that is, with the least friction and under the guidance of the most 
sympathetic and critical mind, must embody curves that are the 
resultant of mechanical forces as truly as any mechanical effect 
can be such. 

This is illustrated in the following line of oval drills and letter 
forms. In the six different forms of the retraced ovals presented 
each shows a step in the work of perfecting the movement, as 
each also shows the form of O that would necessarily be the 
natural product of the movement if persistently trained in that 
particular form of movement drill. The physiological structure of 
the arm is such that when the arm movement has been developed 
to practically its highest capacity and is employed in the most 
nearly possible perfect manner; that is, with the nerves calm, the 
muscle relaxed, a right angle at the elbow, the table and chair 
of proper height, and all other contributing elements properly 
subordinated, it will produce an ellipse whose shorter diameter 
is practically two-thirds its longer diameter; whose two sides 
have lines of equal curvature, and whose two ends are alike. The 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


27 


more highly the movement becomes trained the more perfect will 
be the ellipse produced. The size and slant will vary slightly with 
individuals, and the proportion of width to length will also show 
slight variations, but the more highly the movement becomes 
trained the more positive, uniform, symmetrical and mechanically 
accurate will the form become. 

This oval or ellipse is the basis of all capital letter forms, and 
practically all curves found in any capital letter have their perfect 
correspondences in the oval. It is, in fact, the type of all penman¬ 
ship curves. Upon this fact, and the additional element of the 
straight line, rests all form structure in penmanship, and this fact 
makes letter forms, produced by a highly trained arm movement, 
as natural as the mechanics of the arm movement itself. 

The distorted and misshapen forms found in many works on 
penmanship can be attributed to but one of two causes; viz., 

1. The result of an untrained or poorly trained arm movement. 

2. Forms drawn by one ivho has neither perfected his concepts 
nor trained his movement. 

The true test of letter forms is the penmanship type ellipse. All 
letters should be judged by this standard, as all letters are com¬ 
posed of either curves or straight lines or both, and the curves 
must be found in the penmanship ellipse. The ellipse may be of 
any size but it must be accurate to serve as a standard for judg¬ 
ing letter forms. The size must also vary indefinitely to serve as 
a standard in all letters. 

Poor letter forms are those in which the curves do not conform 
to the true penmanship ellipse; in which proportions do not har¬ 
monize ; in which curved and straight lines are not assigned 
definite and correct places to satisfy the highest standards of 
beauty and legibility, and in which the strokes do not adapt them¬ 
selves perfectly to ease and rapidity of execution. Good letters 
must meet the requirements of a well trained arm movement; 
must satisfy the trained sense of harmony and beauty; must be 
perfectly legible, and must admit of easy and rapid execution. 
Such letters have their foundation in the mechanics of the arm 
movement. The expert finds them growing in his concept and 
also finds his movement following their outlines with ever in¬ 
creasing mechanical accuracy. He does not choose them as much 


as he finds them to be forced upon him. As he analyzes his pro¬ 
ductions he is often surprised at the uniformity he has uncon¬ 
sciously embodied in them. He produces these forms, so rich in 
beauty, because they reflect his perfected concept and his highly 
trained movement. They are graceful just as the movements of 
his arm are graceful, and for the same reason they embody uni¬ 
form elements of accuracy and definite proportions. The same 
fundamental determining factors also result in eliminating the 
aspects of stiffness and awkward angularities. 

So perfectly is the penmanship type oval employed, and so fully 
are the elements of smoothness, grace and harmony of proportions 
reflected in writing produced by a highly trained arm movement 
that the quality of the movement may be definitely judged from 
its product in these respects. It thus becomes an easy matter for 
the competent critic to determine whether or not the forms 
adopted by a penmanship author are determined by an inferior 
or superior arm movement or are selected independent of any 
movement consideration. No one can rightly judge these matters 
except those who have passed through the experience of developing 
the arm movement to a high degree because only such are able to 
judge the value of letter forms from the standpoint of execution 
as well as from that of legibility. 

GRADING PUPILS’ SPECIMENS 

All pupils should be required to adhere to the schedule pre¬ 
sented in this text, in working through their penmanship books, and 
should be permitted to advance ahead of the schedule only by reason 
of attaining an exceptionally high standard on the successive les¬ 
sons. The best plan for the teacher to use is described as follows: 

1. Use five numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) or five letters (A, B, C, 
D, E) and let each numeral or letter represent five units on the 
percentage scale, thus: 

1 or A.96% to 100% 4 or D.81% to 85% 

2 or B.91% to 95% 5 or E.76% to 80% 

3 or C.86% to 90% 6 or F.not passing 

(Place the above outline of grading on the blackboard where it 

may remain. Below 76% is to be considered not passing.) 









28 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


2. Require all lessons to be made up on the page as shown in 
the illustration in this text under the title: “Arranging the Work 
on the Page.” 

3. Whenever the pupil has prepared a page, mark it with one 
of the numerals or letters to indicate the class to which it belongs. 
If the marking is 6 or F the pupil is to continue working on the 
same lesson and make another full page. If the paper is given a 
passing grade; that is, any number from 1 to 5, he is to commence 
on the next lesson. The marked pages must be preserved and may 
be kept by the pupils or teacher. 

4. If the pupil has prepared all the lessons that are listed in 
the schedule for the grading period, and the grading period has not 
yet expired, have him rewrite the lesson that has the lowest grade 
of all that he has prepared during the grading period. Mark this 
new specimen as explained under paragraph 3, and if the mark is 
higher than was given the first specimen of the same lesson, dis¬ 
card the first and keep this second trial in its stead. In the same 
way have the pupil rewrite as many lessons as he still has time 
for within the grading period, except specimens that are marked 
with 1 or A, which need not be re-written. 

5. Pupils who receive the mark of 1 or A on all lessons should 
be permitted to advance through the book without regard to the 
schedule, so long as they merit the mark of 1 or A on each suc¬ 
cessive lesson. They must stop, however, on any lesson they pre¬ 
pare (beyond the lessons indicated for that grading period) that 
does not merit the mark of 1 or A, and continue practicing it until 
they make it well enough to merit the highest mark, or until the 
grading period has expired. 

6. When the grading period has expired and the grades are to 
be recorded, the partial grades placed on the specimens as ex¬ 
plained under paragraphs 3 and 4 are to be averaged for the 
complete grade. In determining the complete grade the several 
specimens are to be given per cent grades within the classes indi¬ 
cated by the numerals or letters, and these per cents are to be 
added and averaged for the complete grade. Only the specimen 
of each lesson having the highest grade listed in the schedule 


for the grading period is to be considered in determining the 
complete or final grade for the grading period. 

Pupils who are ahead of the schedule should be graded on the 
lessons for the grading period for which the grades are being re¬ 
corded and not on their present advanced work. This will, of 
course, mean that such pupils must be given a grade that falls in 
the class 1 or A, since they would not be ahead of the schedule 
unless they were meriting such a mark. 

NOTE. All pupils’ specimens of lesson work that are given 
grades of 2 or lower, should have indicated on them the improve¬ 
ments to be made to bring the work to a higher standard. Or the 
teacher may give the pupils the necessary criticisms orally. It is 
bad practice to have a pupil re-write a specimen without knowing 
definitely what improvements he should try to make. These 
criticisms should be brief and should always take into account 
the most outstanding defects. The following are examples of 
helpful criticisms that may be used: 

6. Make the lines lighter. 

7. Make the work more compact. 

8. Make the work more uniform. 

9. Make the work larger. 

10. Make the work smaller. 

11. Improve details of form. 

12. Write on the ruled lines. 

13. Make the down strokes straight. 

14. Write with more speed. 

15. Use a purer arm movement. 

16. Do not lift the pen. 

17. Improve the spacing. 

18. Improve the heading. 

19. Put on the final strokes. 

20. Make better beginnings. 

21. Make the ovals overlap more. 

22. Make the slant more uniform. 

23. Make the slant like push-pull. 

24. Make the page look neater. 

25. Make the ovals the form of O. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


29 


These and other brief criticisms may be written on the black¬ 
board in a column, where they may be preserved, and numbered 
from 6 upward. The numbers, then, may be placed on the pupils’ 
specimens, separated from the grade by a dash, thus: 3—6. This 
would indicate that the specimen merited a grade of 3 (C, 86% to 
90 %) and that the criticism is, make the lines lighter, which 
improvement would have to be made to merit a higher grade. 

ILLUSTRATION 

As an illustration, let us consider a pupil in grade V in the 
second month and working under the four weeks’ grading period. 
He would be required to work out two lessons. Say he prepares 
one the first week which merits a mark of 3; and prepares another 
the second week which merits a mark of 2. He still has two weeks 
within the grading period. He should next be required to re-write 
the first of the two. Perhaps the specimen will then merit a 
grade of 2 or even 1. Next have him re-write the second one. 
Say it will now merit a mark of 1. If both merit the mark of 1 
he should be permitted to pass to the lessons of the next grading 
period; that is, ahead of the schedule. If one of the specimens 
still ranks below the mark of 1, he must re-write it again and 
again as often as there is still time within the grading period, as 
no pupil is to be permitted to pass into the work of the next 


grading period until the present period has expired or unless he 
has received the mark of 1 on all lessons. 

Pupils whose specimens merit the highest mark (1) on each 
lesson taken in regular order, are to be permitted to advance with¬ 
out regard to the schedule, even into higher books. 

This plan of grading and promotion has been .thoroughly tested 
in many schools and has been found to create almost unlimited 
interest among pupils where it has been correctly followed. It 
was originated by the author in his work as supervisor of pen¬ 
manship in the Emporia, Kansas, schools, in 1916, and has been 
in constant use there ever since. The result is that in this par¬ 
ticular school system there are pupils in all grades from the second 
to the eighth who are ahead of the regular schedule, some even 
two or three entire books ahead, having merited the highest grade 
on each successive lesson in all the books. The penmanship of 
these pupils is, of course, quite extraordinary as a result of their 
systematic and persistent practice in school and at home. 

POSITION 

Correct posture of the body, correct manner of holding the 
pencil or pen and correct placement of the paper are important 
considerations in learning to write, for the following reasons: 

Correct posture of the body is important in preserving and pro- 
















30 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


ducing health, by giving unrestricted action to the circulation of 
the blood, to breathing, to digestion, to the flow of nervous force 
and free play of the muscles, and by giving the proper support to 
spine, shoulders, neck and other parts of the body. No attain¬ 
ment should be considered justified if secured at the expense of 
health, and since health may be preserved in the pursuit of attain¬ 
ments, by the observance of known rules and laws, it is proper 
both to encourage the quest of attainment and to insist that health 
be preserved. 

Correct pencil or pen holding and correct placement of the 
paper are important in that errors in these lead to waste of time 
and energy. Such errors result in modifications of movement, 
slant, spacing, height and line quality in writing, until they be¬ 
come, in many cases, obstacles of such seriousness as to almost, 
if not wholly, obstruct progress. The body, arm and hand must be 
considered as a machine, the perfect adjustment of which must be 
insisted upon so rigidly and for so long a time that it will finally 
be reduced to a habit, when the elements of good position will 
unconsciously assert themselves whenever any writing is under¬ 
taken. 


One frequently hears persons say they know what is the cor¬ 
rect writing position but do not take time to assume it. This 
merely betrays the absence of the habit referred to. No one can 
depend upon accurately and uniformly performing any of the 
artificial bodily acts which constitute the structure of physical 
education, unless these acts are reduced to habits. Talking, 
handling a knife and fork, manipulating a hammer, a typewriter, 
a piano, a bicycle can not be done with sufficient reliance, ac¬ 
curacy, dexterity or speed to make them practicable until they 
are made habitual. 

It is fundamental in teaching that the elements of good posture 
be forever under surveillance, in other subjects as well as in pen¬ 
manship. This is the more serious bceause many pupils come into 
the school with wrong habits already quite well formed, and there 
is the double task laid upon the teacher, of breaking up a wrong 
habit and directing the formation of a right one. 

Due to incorrect seating arrangements it is frequently impossible 
to observe the elements of proper posture for writing in every de¬ 
tail. Desks and seats are in many instances not properly adjusted 
to each other. Many do not afford sufficient top surface. The 

















THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


31 


light is frequently inadequate or admitted at an improper angle. 
The temperature is sometimes distracting. But in the face of 
these and other obstacles ingenuity will enable the teacher to make 
adjustments that will bring improvement into many situations. 

Pupils should be seated so the larger ones will have the ad¬ 
vantage of the larger desks, especially for penmanship, and it is 
good management to have pupils change seats, if necessary, during 
the writing period, to accommodate all to the best advantage. Pupils 
seated in the darker places in the room may be placed where the 
light is better during the penmanship recitation. Better work can 
be done at times by moving closer to the stove or radiator, or 
by locating near an open window, where the temperature is less 
oppressive or annoying. Writing requires relaxed muscles and 
harmonious nerves and whatever works contrary to these condi¬ 
tions obstructs progress. The best penman cannot work in a 
room that is too cold or that is oppressively hot. Nor can he work 
at a desk that is too high or too low. How, then, can beginners 
do so? 

The correct posture of the body is described as follows: Sit 
facing the desk and close to it, without pressing against it. Rest 
the feet on the floor; rest both arms on the desk, forming, ap¬ 
proximately, right angles at the elbows; droop the head suf¬ 
ficiently to establish a direct line of vision; incline the body 
forward slightly at the hips, and very slightly away from the 
writing arm. To assume the position described will, obviously, 
necessitate that the seat be of such a height that the feet will 
rest on the floor without depressing or unduly lifting the knees. 
Also, the desk must be of such a height that when the forearms 
are placed upon the desk there will be no necessity of unduly 
elevating or depressing the shoulders. It is in such details that 
teachers will find serious obstacles to good work, because, as 
already stated, many seats and desks will not admit of the pupil’s 
assuming such a position as has been described. It should not 
be necessary for the pupil to sit with his feet dangling, or with 
his body humped over to reach the desk with his forearms, or 
have his shoulders pushed up because the desk is too high above 
the seat. Some of these situations can be remedied by the teacher 
and some cannot, but every effort should be made to make the 


environment as nearly perfect as possible, which, of course, all real 
teachers will undertake to do. 

The pencil or penholder should be held between the second 
finger and the thumb, crossing the second finger at about the 
root of the nail. The thumb should be placed flat against the 
pencil or penholder. The last two fingers should be drawn under 
the hand with a regular curve at the joints, bringing them to a 
position which will permit the nail or the side of the first phalange 
of the little finger to become a rest for the hand on the desk. 
The first finger should be held in a regular curve, all the joints 
projecting upward. It is a serious error if the first joint of the 
first finger is permitted to bend downward, as this is always an 
indication that there is too much tension on the writing muscles. 
If the muscles are properly relaxed this joint will remain bent 
upward. 

Many expert penmen have the hand rest at the first joint of 
the little finger, and it is safe to allow it to be at any point from 
the nail to the first joint, as may seem to accommodate the con¬ 
formation of the hand the best. The fingers should all be in 
contact with each other so that there will be a firm support for 
the hand. Permitting the last two fingers to turn outward, or the 
little finger to stand in mid-air beside the hand, is especially in¬ 
correct and should never be allowed. To hold the fingers so nearly 
straight that the little finger, or the last two fingers will have 
their ends placed against the desk is equally wrong. The fingers 
should be folded together in a loose fist. 

All the muscles in the arm and hand should be relaxed as com¬ 
pletely as possible. Such relaxation will cause the hand to tip 
away from the body at varying degrees in different persons. This 
tipping should not be permitted to carry the angle of the wrist to 
a point more than forty-five degrees above the plane of the desk; 
or to a point where it will cause the top of the pencil or penholder 
to point outside of the elbow of the writing arm. It is also im¬ 
portant not to allow the hand to tip over far enough to bring the 
fleshy part of the hand into contact with the desk. 

In using the arm movement it is very important that the wrist 
and fleshy part of the hand do not touch the desk, as this would 
cause friction which would obstruct progress. In the primary 



32 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


grades, where no arm movement is attempted, it is not so im¬ 
portant that the wrist be held above the desk, but it is desirable 
that it be so held. Other than this one detail there is no dif¬ 
ference in position permissible for primary or any pupils. That 
standards must be allowed to vary in different grades is, of course, 
understood; otherwise we might expect everything to be learned 
in the first grade. But the elements of correct bodily posture 
and correct holding of the pencil or pen and correct placement of 
the paper are the same in all grades, with the one exception men¬ 
tioned. 

The paper should be placed parallel with the forearm, when the 
forearm is placed at the middle of the paper. The ruled lines 
should lie at right angles to the forearm so the pencil or pen, 
properly held, will approximately follow the line when the hand 
is swung from side to side. The arm movement admits of better 
control within the right angle than without. That is, better 
writing can be done when the forearm forms less than a right 
angle, than when it forms more than a right angle. After the 
forearm passes the right angle, in opening the elbow, its power 
to do accurate writing gradually diminishes, until it disappears 
entirely as the arm becomes straight. Inside of the right angle 
the writing power of the forearm also gradually diminishes but 
does not wholly disappear, even when the forearm touches the 
upper arm. 

Due to this distribution of power, and because the best of the 
power lies on either side of and near the right angle, with a 
slight advantage on the inside, it is best to place the forearm 
slightly toward the right of the middle of the page (left-handed 
writers slightly toward the left of the middle), leaving a little 
more than half the line to be written with the forearm at less 
than a right angle and slightly less than half the line with the 
forearm at more than a right angle. With the forearm placed as 
directed, and with a scope of movement sufficient to make the 
oval drill four ruled spaces (% inch ruling) in height, accurate 
writing may be done on any part of the line (8% inch paper) 
from one position; that is, without shifting either the paper or 
the arm. As the scope of the movement exceeds the limits men¬ 
tioned the line may be extended correspondingly. Further ex¬ 


planations are given on this point under the heading Scope of 
Movement and Reserve Power. 

The top of the pencil or penholder should point between the 
elbow and the shoulder, but no exact point should be insisted 
upon. The reason for this variation is that arms having different 
conformations will result in corresponding differences in the 
angles assumed by the hands with relaxed muscles. The pencil 
or penholder should stand at an angle of forty-five degrees above 
the plane of the desk. This is uniform in all cases and is necessary 
to secure the most perfect action of the writing instrument. The 
relation of the hand or fingers to the pencil or penholder will vary 
with individuals; that is, with some persons the pencil or pen¬ 
holder may cross the first finger above the knuckle joint, with 
others at this joint, and with still others below the joint, de¬ 
pending upon the conformation of the several hands; but the 
angle of the pencil or penholder to the desk will be the same in all 
cases, if held correctly. If the hand is extremely long the pencil 
or penholder will cross the finger at a higher point. The relation 
of the hand to the pencil or penholder is also modified by the 
height at which the hand and wrist are held above the desk. 

The point of contact of the forearm with the desk; that is, the 
arm rest, should be short rather than long, to produce the best re¬ 
sults. This can be adjusted, more or less, by raising the hand 
and wrist more. In cases of extremely slender forearms the 
author has frequently found it helpful to place a small round pad 
made of several pieces of felt glued together under the arm at the 
arm rest. This device can usually be discarded as soon as the 
pupil has made a good start in the arm movement. 

The left hand (or the one not used in writing) should manipu¬ 
late the paper to the accommodation of the right (or writing) 
hand, and as the writing progresses line after line down the page 
the paper should be moved forward and not the writing arm back¬ 
ward. The writing arm should be maintained in a perfect posi¬ 
tion at all times. The correct position must be assumed and 
guarded with serious attention until the time when it seems most 
natural and convenient; that is, until it is assumed habitually, 
after which it will need no more attention than any other habit. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


33 



GRAPH REPRESENTING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MOTOR SYSTEM 

In this diagram six years are assumed to have elapsed before the first year of grade school. During these six years the development of the MOTOR 
SYSTEM (motor centers in the brain and motor nerves) is meager. The heavy black line begins with the first year of grade school life and shows that 
the development of the MOTOR SYSTEM is slow and gradual until the child reaches the pre-adolescent period (about the ninth year; fourth grade), when 
it enters a stage of much more rapid growth. The rate of growth increases as the pupil advances into the adolescent period, reaching its full development 
at about the sixteenth or seventeenth year—earlier in girls and later in boys. The curve in the diagram illustrates when the arm movement may be 
taught advantageously—its development and successful employment being dependent wholly upon the MOTOR SYSTEM. It will be noted that the 
earliest period at which it may be undertaken to any advantage is in the fourth grade (ninth year of age, generally speaking), when the NORM, or general 
curve, of motor development makes a rather sharp turn upward. The possibilities of the arm movement rise with the curve, and through Grades IV, V, 
VI, VII and VIII, and the first two years in the high school, this movement can be taught with ever increasing effectiveness. 

After the MOTOR SYSTEM attains its full development and is no longer characterized by growth, it gradually assumes a state of fixity or rigidity, 

and the work of mastering the arm movement thereafter becomes gradually (for some years only slightly) more difficult. Thenceforth the work of 

mastering the arm movement may be likened to that of RECONSTRUCTING a building; whereas, before this period; that is, during the period of growth, 
it may be likened to the work of original CONSTRUCTION. 

Pupils who are required to attempt to learn the arm movement in Grades I, II and III will be found to have no better use of that movement at the 
end of the fourth grade than those who commence arm movement practice at the beginning of the fourth grade. At the same time their struggle with the 
arm movement, for which they were not old enough, will have required an expenditure of the time they should have devoted to learning, accurately, the 
details of form. 

Teaching POSITION and LETTER FORM in Grades I, II and III, as they should be taught, is a large program, and only the most successful teachers 
will be able to do justice to it. During these years all script forms should be made by DRAWING them with the utmost care. Position of the body and 

of holding the pencil should be given very serious attention. There will thus be laid the necessary foundation to permit of giving the entire time to the 

superstructure, the arm movement, when the proper time arrives in the aging of the pupil to undertake it pedagogically and, therefore, economically and 
successfully. 
























































34 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


PHASES IN LEARNING PENMANSHIP 

Learning to write, when considered from the most elementary 
beginning, as when a child first enters school, to the highest degree 
of expert skill, covers four distinct phases of development; viz., 

THE PRE-ARM MOVEMENT PHASE, 

THE MERE ARM MOVEMENT PHASE, 

THE CAPITAL LETTER ARM MOVEMENT PHASE, 

THE SMALL LETER ARM MOVEMENT PHASE. 

These four phases are explained as follows: 

The Pre-Arm Movement Phase 

This is confined to the primary grades during which the child’s 
nervous system is insufficiently developed to undertake the prac¬ 
tice of the arm movement economically; that is, with results 
accruing that are sufficiently compensating for the time and 
effort that should have to be expended by teacher and pupil. 
During this period (grades I, II and III) the child should he 
taught the elements of correct position of the body and of holding 
the pencil or pen, and to form correct concepts of all the script 
forms. This is a large program and only the best teachers will 
be able to cover it adequately. The first, most fundamental and 
most important element in learning to write well is to build in 
the mind correct concepts of all the letters and numerals. Under 
most teachers this element is only loosely established, if it may 
be said to be established at all. Correct concepts make writing 
accurate, and it is impossible to develop the power to do good 
writing without correct concepts; yet by actual test it has been 
repeatedly proved that a large majority of teachers do not them¬ 
selves have, even approximately, correct concepts of any of the 
letter forms. Intelligent criticism is the basis of all good teach¬ 
ing of writing and this is impossible without the power to visualize 
correct forms. Pupils in the primary grades should be taught 
to recognize correct forms as easily as to recognize the letters 
at all. Pupils in grades I, II and III, when properly trained, 
will be almost as prompt in taking exception to an incorrectly 
formed letter as to a mistake in spelling or English or an arith¬ 


metical equation. Such training cannot be secured unless teachers 
will themselves consider it equally serious to make an incorrect 
letter form where their pupils may see it. Repeated examinations 
have been made into the matter with the uniform result that the 
crude and inexcusable forms used by most school pupils are trace¬ 
able to the unpardonable scribbling done by their teachers. Teach¬ 
ers should be as particular to use only correct letter forms before 
their pupils as they should be to use correct English, correct spell¬ 
ing and correct statements of facts. When pupils copy work from 
the blackboard they will, almost invariably, copy letter forms as 
definitely as they copy the subject matter, and in this way thou¬ 
sands of them regularly undo all the good they may have accom¬ 
plished by studying and drawing the correct forms in their writ¬ 
ing books. To succeed in teaching correct forms, it is absolutely 
necessary that no incorrect forms find lodgment in the pupil’s 
mind. 

THE ARM MOVEMENT 

The arm movement must be considered in three phases; viz., the 
Mere Arm Movement Phase; the Capital Letter Arm Movement 
Phase, and the Small Letter Arm Movement Phase. The move¬ 
ment, as such, is the same in all three phases, but it is subjected 
to certain restrictions and special modes of operation to make it 
applicable to special uses. The distinctive characteristics of the 
arm movement are that the arm for writing must rest on the desk 
at the swell of the forearm just forward from the elbow; that the 
wrist and fleshy part of the hand must be raised slightly from 
the desk to prevent friction at these points; that the little finger 
must rest on the desk to provide a gliding support for the hand, 
and that the arm must be caused to vibrate, extend and contract, 
roll and perform all necessary movements for writing by stretch¬ 
ing the skin covering of the forearm at the arm rest, and that the 
hand must be caused to glide on the little finger in unison with 
the movements of the forearm. 

In using the arm movement the fingers remain inactive except 
as they move with the hand and forearm. There is no action of 
the fingers by flexing their joints as is done in drawing. The 
entire arm structure from the elbow forward acts as a unit. The 
muscles in the shoulder and upper arm furnish the power for 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


35 


pushing the forearm forward and drawing it backward for pro¬ 
ducing height in writing; and the muscles connecting the upper 
arm and the forearm at the elbow, furnish the power for opening 
and closing the elbow, as required for producing slant in writing 
and for carrying the hand from letter to letter as the writing pro¬ 
gresses across the page. 

The Mere Arm Movement Phase 

The arm movement cannot be undertaken, economically, until 
the pupil reaches the age that brings a sufficient development of 
the motor centers and motor nerves. This period is not deter¬ 
mined by educational advancement, but by age. This necessary 
development of the nervous system is reached in the average child 
at about the age of nine years (grade IV). Some children mature 
earlier and in some this development is delayed, but the beginning 
of the fourth grade is set as the most opportune time to commence 
the practice of the arm movement. Thenceforth the central idea in 
all penmanship teaching must be the mastery of the arm move¬ 
ment. If the pupil has not been properly trained in the preceding 
grades he will be compelled to carry the double burden of learning 
form and movement; but if his previous training was sound he 
will now be required to learn only the arm movement, and through 
it will be translated to the paper the correct forms already stored 
in his mind. 

In undertaking to learn the arm movement the first work is to 
learn merely to produce the movement, and at the beginning no 
thought should be given to letter forms. The entire attention 
should be given to producing the proper movement, and this 
should be continued until the arm movement habit has been more 
or less definitely established. The ultimate aim must be to so fix 
the arm movement habit that this movement will come into 
action automatically; that is, without conscious effort, whenever 
any writing is undertaken. This phase may be likened to that 
of constructing a machine which is later to be used for manufac¬ 
turing some marketable product. 

During this constructive phase of the arm movement the same 
fundamental considerations determine final success or failure 
as are noted in the construction of mechanical devices; viz., 


perfect automatic or mechanical operation, with uniformity and 
continuity of action, a minimum of unnecessary or undesirable 
friction and the most perfect adaptability to the purpose for 
which it was constructed. 

During the mere movement phase of training the arm move¬ 
ment should become as fully as possible automatic; that is, so it 
will come promptly into action without conscious effort when any 
writing is undertaken. When under operation it should act with 
a minimum of friction; that is, it should be responsive to the 
smallest requirements without resistance or restriction; it should 
show the utmost resiliency, smoothness and freedom, and it should 
show readiness to adapt itself to the special applications required 
in executing capitals and small letters. 

All of these qualities can be developed in the arm movement 








36 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


through the practice of the mere movement drills by a constant 
and careful observance of the following features: 

1. Make the lines light. 

2. Make the drills of definite size and form. 

3. Make the drills of the required compactness. 

4. Make the drills uniform. 

5. Use a rapid, uniform, unbroken movement. 

The necessity of observing these features in practicing mere 
movement drills, if success is to be attained, is explained as 
follows: 

1. Light lines are of first importance in all mere movement 
practice because “touch,” or sensitiveness in the writing nerves, 
is of first importance, and the development of touch is indicated 
by the quality of lines produced. It is easily understood that one 
could make no progress in learning penmanship by the use of a 
blunt stick. But it is not so generally or easily understood how 
much finer than a blunt stick must be the instrument that best 
serves the ends of mastering penmanship. The free and rapid 
cultivation of sensitiveness in the writing nerves can result only 
from working with an instrument that is sensitive enough 
to respond to all the finer impulses of the writing movements, to 
the minor inaccuracies of position and to the slightest abuses to 
which the writing implement may be subjected by the learner. 
If a pencil is used it should be of such a consistency that it will 
make too broad a mark if there is more than the minimum of 
pressure; but it should make a clear fine line with this minimum 
pressure. If a pen is used it should be of such fineness and 
flexibility that it will respond to the slightest undue gripping 
or pressure and show its responsiveness in thickened down 
strokes. Coarse, extremely stiff pens or fountain pens should 
never be used in penmanship practice because they cannot con¬ 
tribute to the training of the writing nerves in developing touch, 
which is one of the chief purposes of practice. 

2. The ultimate purpose of training the arm movement is to 
make it capable of producing script forms legibly and with ease. 
To accomplish this end it is, of course, necessary that constant 
effort be made to control the movement and make it obedient to 
the will and the judgment of form. Such a result must ever be 


measured by specific effort. Mere loose, rambling movements 
cannot accomplish it. The concept of the outline to be followed 
must be a clean-cut, definite picture in the mind; the size must be 
fully pre-determined and persistent effort must be made to bring 
both the size and the form into reality on the paper. It is this per¬ 
sistent effort to make the movement do specific things that results 
in training and improvement. 

All mere movement oval drills should be the true penmanship 
oval form, which is three-fifths as wide as long (sometimes gen¬ 
eralized as two-tliirds as wide as long), because most of the 
curved strokes used in the capital letters are arcs found in this 
form. If the oval drills are practiced otherwise; that is, im¬ 
properly proportioned, or with irregular, angular or unbalanced 
parts, it must follow that a movement trained to so perform must 
impose its deformities upon its product later when it undertakes 
to produce letters. Valuable criticisms on oval practice must 
ever he in regard to form, regularity, uniformity, line quality and 
compactness, because these affect the ultimate object of the 
practice. 

3. All mere movement drills are characterized by mere repeti¬ 
tion of a single outline. It follows, as already explained, that to 
achieve the chief end in practicing these drills the outline should 
be followed uniformly, since doing so trains the writing nerves 
to become responsive to the idea of form. But this practice should 
also cultivate the touch as described in a preceding paragraph, and 
the element of touch is greatly affected by the compactness of the 
work. The line quality must be very fine to admit of great com¬ 
pactness, and beginners will usually be quick to complain that 
making the work compact spoils it by giving it a blurred or 
smeared effect. The beginner’s remedy is to not retrace so often, 
which is merely dodging the issue. The correct remedy is to make 
the lines finer and continue the compactness. The beginner’s 
remedy arrests the development of touch; the correct remedy im¬ 
proves the touch. Making such drills as the compact continuous 
oval and the compact oblique straight line very dense is of so great 
importance that the line of work should frequently be inverted 
and successive “coats” applied from alternate ends. This plan 
also affords additional advantage in giving the movement ae- 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


37 


curacy or precision as the writer can give concentrated attention 
to making his pen strike the minute white spaces left between the 
previously made lines as it moves in its swift flight. This prac¬ 
ticing of “aiming” at the minute white spaces is a very important 
element in bringing the movement under complete control. 

4. Every mere movement drill conforms to a specific outline, 
however simple that outline may be, and the process of making the 
movement observe this outline in its performance is vital to its 
training. In making the compact continuous oval drill the size 
should be definite—whether one, two, three or four spaces or 
tapering in height, and the utmost pains should constantly be 
taken to make each revolution conform to the specified size. This 
constant endeavor to make the movement meet a definite require¬ 
ment in its action leads to the elimination of resisting qualities 
and to ultimate perfect responsiveness, if persisted in. 

5. Rapid practice is necessary because it causes rapid de¬ 
struction of nerve and muscle substance—the nerve and muscle 
substance that is not well adapted to the purpose in hand, and 
the consequent rapid rebuilding of the same. Rapid practice also 
promotes concentration and it should be rapid enough to compel 
concentration. Such concentration — concentration to the exclusive 
end of producing a desired result with the arm movement, instills 
into the new nerve and muscle cells which are being formed in con¬ 
sequence of the rapid arm movement practice, or imparts to them 
somehow, the quality of being adapted to the purpose upon which 
the mind is concentrated. Thus it is that under the stress of 
exclusive concentration one may master physical acts without re¬ 
gard to time. Thus it is that children learn to perform quickly 
that in which they are greatly interested. A boy might learn to 
ride a bicycle; throw a curve from the pitcher’s box; swing a 
lasso with precision, or walk a tight rope, if he is greatly in¬ 
terested in any of these, in much less time than would be required 
to master a more simple performance on which he could not or 
would not concentrate his mind because of lack of interest. 

Rapid practice also promotes uniformity of motion and smooth¬ 
ness. Such practice overcomes the tendency to wriggle and 
form angularities, and reduces the tendency to submit to interrup¬ 
tion. It creates interest in the performance—in the rhythm and 


sensation of the movement and in the unfolding product. It dispels 
indifference and arouses enthusiasm. It furnishes a field for re¬ 
flection and speculation and causes the mind to revert to the 
practice periods at frequent intervals, thus enhancing the process 
of revolutionizing the writing nerves and muscles and making 
them better adapted to the purpose of writing. 

The Capital Letter Arm Movement Phase 

This phase follows the mere movement phase because it is most 
directly related to it. The capitals are classified to make the 
transition from the mere movement to the captial letter movement 
almost imperceptible. They are placed in eight groups which are 
determined by their forms and their movement requirements. 
These eight groups are arranged in the order of their pedagogic 
simplicity, and the letters within the several groups are arranged 
according to the same principle. This makes the plan synthetic 
throughout and practice on any letter within a group becomes 
preparatory practice for the next letter within the group and re¬ 
view practice of the preceding letter. 

Successful teaching requires that each capital should be prac¬ 
ticed with the arm movement until a movement habit for making 
the letter correctly has been formed. Thereafter it will he pro¬ 
duced mechanically or automatically, just like walking, operating 
a typewriter, playing a piano, etc. Habits require no conscious 
effort and good habits are as easily established as poor ones, in 
the absence of any habits. It is, therefore, of the greatest im¬ 
portance when learning the arm movement and forming habits 
governing its use that the strictest attention be given to every 
detail involved. If the pupil is permitted to give the first five or 
ten minutes’ practice to a new letter while holding in mind an 
incorrect form he will certainly have laid the foundation for 
future trouble, since what he may have accomplished in the way 
of forming a movement habit for that letter during that time must 
be undone to enable him to form a correct movement habit. 

The teacher must know what should be done; must know how 
it should be done, and must direct the pupil to do the right thing in 
the right way, if there is to be real teaching done. The test will 
always be: Has the pupil actually learned. 



38 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


The arm movement as applied to the execution of capital letters 
embodies the general characteristics of the movement as used in 
mere movement drills; viz., generally continuous; largely in 
curves; lifting the pen at the proper places without interrupting 
the movement; making fine hair lines and aiming to make a spe¬ 
cific form of a specific size. But in addition the problem now takes 
on many intricacies not present in mere movement drills. Each let¬ 
ter presents new features to be studied, new details to be impressed 
upon the mind, new complexities for the movement to trace. The 
direct movement being easiest, due to the physiological structure 
of the arm, the capitals made with this movement are placed in 
the first group. The O, being the easiest of all direct oval capitals, 
is placed first in Group I. The step from the oval movements, 
and more especially the link oval, to the O is a very simple one, 
and, consequently, this letter will seem to present hardly a 
semblance of a new problem. The successive transitions from 
letter to letter, in the grouping followed, regularly present the 
least possible increase in difficulty and complexity, and if each 
letter is quite thoroughly mastered much of the apparent difficulty 


that seems to be awaiting the learner as he examines the various 
capitals dissolves before the magic of improved movement power 
as he advances. 

As the O is the easiest capital and employs the simplest move¬ 
ment, so each successive capital, in the grouping used, increases 
the complexity and difficulty to the least possible extent. As far as 
possible the movement required in each letter becomes a prepara¬ 
tory training for the succeeding letter and a review of the pre¬ 
ceding one. The arrangement is the result of countless experi¬ 
ments extending over many years and reduces the process of 
progressing through the alphabet to an almost perfect gliding 
scale. 

Each capital should be studied so minutely as to form, and 
practiced with such a free, rapid, uniform movement as to result 
in establishing a correct arm movement habit for the latter. This 
will require indefinite repetition, but repetition is the price of all 
habit forming, and should be undertaken with as much enthusiasm 
as possible, that the process may be accomplished as quickly as 
possible. 



2 . 




4 



5-6 





GROUP / CROUP n 



CROUP /// 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


39 


The Small Letter Arm Movement Phase 

The small letter movement is a special adaptation of the arm 
movement. Instead of being characterized by spiral, curved, 
gliding movements, moving in a more or less continuous and quite 
regular swirl, as used in making the capitals, it must (for exe¬ 
cuting small letters having one or more straight down strokes) 
pass from the gliding motion as of the skater to the measured step 
of the walker. Upon the perfect understanding and thorough appli¬ 
cation of this movement depends the attainment of accuracy in 
making the small letters with the arm movement. 

Many teachers criticise the arm movement as not being suited 
to small letter writing; and many teachers complain that, while 
their pupils succeed quite encouragingly in learning to make the 
mere movement drills, and are hardly less successful in wx-iting 
the capitals with the arm movement, when they undertake to 
write the small letters with this movement the work degenerates 
into a loose, sprawling scrawl. The trouble lies in not adapting 
the movement to the special requirements of small letters by 
using the true small letter movement. All expert penmen use this 
special adaptation of the arm movement for writing the small 
letters that have straight down strokes; but as a special phase of 
movement, to be especially taught and learned as such, it was 
first discovered by the author, and by him first reduced to rule 
and scientific explanation. Naturally, he arranged drills for 
acquiring skill in this special phase of movement, and with these 
drills, correctly employed, the work of learning to write the small 
letters accurately as well as rapidly and easily has become even 
more encouraging than that of learning to write the capitals well 
with the arm movement. 

The fact that of the forty (not counting the tick strokes) down 
strokes required to make the small letter alphabet, thirty-two 
are sraight strokes, makes it easy to understand why a purely 
spiral or rolling movement cannot be used successfully in writing 
small letters. To attempt to do so, as is often disastrously done, 
can result in nothing short of making all down strokes curved, 
and in disarranging the spacing between the parts of letters and 
between the letters and usually in making the letters too large. 


This of course means that a loose sprawl characterizes the writing. 
A parallel effect would be produced if one should try to play a 
piano with the movement required for manipulating the violin 
bow. The capital letter movement bears a relation to the small 
letter movement analogous to that which skating bears to walking, 
or that the ball bearing movement does to the rachet movement in 
machinery. 

The rule governing the small letter movement is stated thus: 
Make a quick up-and-down movement and stop, for each straight 
down stroke that rests on the writing line. Each element em¬ 
bodied in the rule must be understood and applied correctly to 
produce perfect results. The movement must be quick. Each 
movement, up-and-down, must be considered as a unit and the 
description, quick, must apply to the complete movement, up-and- 






40 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


down. By quick is meant that the entire movement, up-and-down, 
is produced almost in an instant, and all on a single count, 
although the counting apparently runs wholly with the down 
strokes. The stop must be a complete stop, not a mere slackening 
of the speed, or a slur in the movement. The stop must be as 
perfect as if no further movement were to be made, but the pen 
remains on the paper to the end of the drill. 

As practice on the mere movement drills is required to lay the 
foundation for subsequent practice on the capitals, so now practice 
on the special drills for developing the small letter movement 
must lay the foundation for subsequently making the small letters 
successfully. 

In counting for small letter movement drills the pauses between 
the counts, and thus between the successive down strokes, must at 
first be quite prolonged—about as long as the time between 1 and 
5, and between 5 and 10, in the count of ten for the compact, con¬ 
tinuous oval drill. That is, about three down strokes should be 
made in the small letter movement drill, to ten down strokes in 
the oval practice. At the same time each individual movement 
in a small letter drill is made with a speed equal to that used 
in the oval drills. The time lost is at the stops. As the practice 
progresses and the movement becomes more and more perfect and 
more habitual, the pauses should become shorter and shorter 
until at last they become imperceptible. This may be likened to 
learning to play on a piano. At first the pauses between suc¬ 
cessive notes are prolonged so the time may be emphasized and 
perfected. As skill is acquired the pauses become less con¬ 
spicuous until at last they apparently disappear in one continuous 
blend of sounds. But the time remains precise and distinct in 
the perfect music. 

To practice the small letter movement drills with the capital 
letter movement; that is, without observing the small letter move¬ 
ment rule of a quick up-and-down movement and stop, or without 
observing the time, or measure, is injurious, because it only 
seiwes to make the task of learning to write the small letters 
properly more difficult, and helps to further fix the habit of 
using the spiral, or rolling capital letter movement for writing 
small letters, which is inadequate. As in all habit forming actions, 


arm movement practice should be in strict observance of the 
known requirements. To practice without regard to the real re¬ 
quirements is to form habits that may or may not be helpful 
toward the end sought. They may even be harmful. 

SOME UNWARRANTED CONCLUSIONS 

The conclusions of certain investigators that writing should 
not be taught in the higher grades has gained considerable cur¬ 
rency and because these conclusions are essentially erroneous, 
this Chapter is devoted to an analysis of the premises out of which 
the deductions that led to the aforesaid erroneous conclusions 
arose. The investigators referred to made extensive surveys of 
writing in the public schools of certain states, gathering substan¬ 
tial proof that the writing of the majority of pupils showed no¬ 
ticeable improvement from grade to grade until the fifth grade 
was reached. In the fifth grade, or at latest in the sixth, the 
improvement seemed, generally, to he arrested, and thereafter 
there was no worth while improvement made, and in many cases 
the writing showed actual retrogression. 

That the investigation was honest and thorough must be 
granted. It must also be conceded that, if the premises are cor¬ 
rect, the recommendation offered by these investigators that 
writing he not taught after the period or grade in which the 
arrest of progress occurs, is pedagogically sound and should be 
acted upon. The only point open to.controversy is this: Are the 
conditions as found hy the investigators due to the utter inability 
of the pupils to further improve in writing after the fifth or sixth 
grade, or ore they due to inadequate teaching in the higher grades? 

The presumption of the investigators was: that writing, an art, 
was taught equally well with the other arts, music, drawing sew¬ 
ing, etc.; that in all the other arts pupils continued to make 
progress as long as they continued in the subjects; that in writing 
their progress uniformly ceased at a given stage in their school 
careers. Therefore, it is a waste of time and energy to continue 
the subject of writing in the higher grades. This presumption 
is wholly unwarranted by the facts in the case, as we shall under¬ 
take to demonstrate. 

Script characters may be made by many processes and that 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


41 


these characters are made is not, in itself, proof that they were 
written in the pedagogical sense in which trained teachers now 
speak of writing and teaching writing. The script forms may be 
drawn as they should be in Grades I, II and III, and they may 
be drawn with pencil, pen and ink, brush or other instruments as 
they often are for various uses. But they cannot be drawn with 
sufficient ease and speed to meet the requirements of the higher 
grades, of the office and of life in general. It is in this that the 
first fallacy of the presumption of the investigators lies. 

In Grade I the pupils have nothing so important to learn in 
connection with the execution of script forms as to image the 
forms perfectly in their minds and draw them accurately on their 
papers. The use to which these forms are to be put is of com¬ 
paratively little importance at this time. In Grade II the domi¬ 
nant idea is the same as in Grade I but there is slightly greater 
importance placed upon the use of the forms. This use is still 
further emphasized in Grade III, and with each succeeding grade 
because an ever increasing amount of writing is required on the 
part of the pupil to cover his daily school work. 

If, under this ever increasing demand upon the pupil to use 
script forms, he does not learn to execute them hy the correct 
process; that is, the arm movement, which alone will enable him 
to write with sufficient ease and speed to meet the constantly en¬ 
larging demands, he will find himself facing the necessity of sacri¬ 
ficing form more and more in the vain effort to attain the re¬ 
quired speed, until at last his script degenerates into an illegible 
scrawl. The period in which the demand for quantity usually first 
exceeds the capacity of the drawing process is in Grade VI. In 
Grade VII the requirement for quantity production is noticeably 
in excess of the drawing ability. In Grade VIII the disparagement 
is wide. In the high school the inequality continues to enlarge 
and in college it becomes notoriously hopeless. 

If we accept the testimony of the countless individuals who have 
not learned to write properly we are forced to the conclusion that 
the best possible was done for them while they were in the grades 
or high school but they simply could not learn to write well. This 
testimony, however, cannot be accepted in the face of positive 
knowledge that it is possible for all normally constituted in¬ 


dividuals, at least in the growing period of life, to learn to use 
the arm movement, and in using it write legibly and with ease. 
The fact is, that learning to write with the arm movement, at 
the proper age, is not more difficult than learning to walk, at the 
proper age, and can be depended on as uniformly. 

Learning to write with the arm movement is not a natural act 
as is walking, but it is an artificial act like speech and its laws 
of development are even better understood than those of speech. 
The process is now so fully understood by trained teachers that 
there need be no qualifications made to the statement that all 
normal pupils who are properly taught, at the proper age, learn 
to write easily and rapidly with the arm movement, and their 
writing constantly improves with use, just as is the case in using 
good language, in mathematical computations, in music and in 
other acquisitions. The arm movement is adequate to meet all 
the needs placed upon its product, writing, and those who have 
mastered it need no outside assurance that their writing will not 
deteriorate under the pressure of increased demands. 

The fingers cannot be depended upon to produce writing in 
sufficient quantity and of the required quality to meet the re¬ 
quirements of life. They are adapted to making accurate outlines 
without regard to speed, and in that capacity afford the best 
means for learning the details of form. But they cannot be trained 
to act with great rapidity and their action cannot be maintained 
for any considerable length of time without great fatigue. 

INSTRUCTION AND CRITICISM 

Definiteness of ideas is the first requisite for successful teach¬ 
ing. No one can give clear instruction or criticism out of a hazy 
understanding. One’s progress is determined by the clearness and 
intensity of his thinking and it is more to be wondered at that our 
educational standards are as high as they are than that they are 
no higher, when the vagueness and indefiniteness of much of the 
teaching in our schools is taken into account. 

In teaching writing, as other subjects, success depends upon 
knowing a few fundamentals perfectly, rather th,an in having a 
smattering of a wifle range of generalities. The teacher must 
know all about the elements of correct position—covering the 



42 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


position of the body; of the arms; of the hands; of the pencil or 
penholder in the hand, and of the paper. All the details of this 
subject must be so definitely defined in the teacher’s mind that 
any violation of its requirements by any student will be noted 
instantly and apparently without conscious effort. With such a 
consciousness of the subject the teacher will permit no indiffer¬ 
ence or neglect of the matter on the part of any student and the 
atmosphere of the room will compel all the students to conform 
to the requirements. It is an almost universal rule that students 
take all the liberties allowed; but they soon recognize the limits 
set by the teacher who commands respect because of definiteness 
of instruction. A slovenly position with the body humped over, 
or sagging to one side, or showing a lack of spirit; a pencil or pen¬ 
holder pointing outside of the elbow, or held too nearly vertical 
or too nearly horizontal, or gripped too much; or the paper placed 
at an improper angle or too far from or close to the body, will be 
seen and corrected so promptly by the efficient teacher that the 
most indifferent student will quickly become alert to the require¬ 
ments of the situation. 


In the matter of letter forms the possibilities of and demands 
upon the teacher become greatly enlarged and intensified. Every 
letter, capital and small, and every numeral and script sign should 
be so perfectly defined in the teacher’s mind that deviations^ from 
the perfect standard are noted instantly and apparently without 
conscious effort. With such a mental qualification the teacher will 
never use incorrect styles of letters before the students, and the 
forms will always be made to approximate the perfect standard 
as nearly as possible. The characteristic will, of course, be car¬ 
ried over to the students, and they will be held as definitely ac¬ 
countable in the matter of using the correct styles of letters, and 
of making them with all possible accuracy, as they are in using 
correct English in constructing sentences, or in spelling correctly, 
or in making their arithmetical solutions accurate. 

When the arm movement grades are reached the efficient 
teacher will understand the elements of this movement and their 
application and know, definitely, how to teach it. It is certainly 
no more excusable for a teacher in the arm movement grades not 
to be able to write with this movement or teach it correctly than 

to be similarly deficient in arithmetic 
or grammar or any other subject, 
since writing is one of the required 
subjects and in importance is second 
to none, except speech, in the lives of 
the students. Teachers who have not 
had the opportunity during their pre¬ 
paratory years, or who did not realize 
the importance of this special prep¬ 
aration until they became teachers, 
should conscientiously face the situa¬ 
tion and apply themselves to the 
mastery of the elements of the sub¬ 
ject without further delay. 

It has been proved countless thou¬ 
sands of times that under proper in¬ 
struction students may almost uni¬ 
formly leave the grades upon gradua¬ 
tion with ability to write a style that 








THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


43 


approximates the quality that has given the best business colleges 
the distniction of being singularly successful in teaching this 
subject. This being the case, how can a conscientious teacher 
bear to see his students pass from the grades still fouled in the 
clutches of the miserable handwriting that will likely be a 
handicap to them and an imposition to others all their lives? 
It is utterly unfair and unwarranted, and no teacher should be 
excused from teaching writing according to the modern methods 
that are known to produce desirable results. 

In criticising the teacher must know that definiteness is the one 
first requisite. It is a waste of breath and time to merely say 
to a student: “You must make it better than that.” He doubtless 
knows that sufficiently well already. In some subjects there is 


merit in merely checking results and informing the student that 
his product or answer is wrong. But in an art, and especially 
in writing, the all important thing to tell the student is what is 
wrong, and how to make the necessary correction. Many of these 
criticisms may be made in a general way, as make the lines 
lighter, make the work larger, make the work smaller, make the 
work more compact, make the work more uniform, make the down 
strokes straight, etc., but in criticising forms the particular de¬ 
tails to be corrected should be indicated by actually marking the 
letter and showing the student how to make the necessary changes. 
The real teacher must take upon himself the responsibility of in¬ 
structing the student exactly how to work and then in seeing to 
it that he works in that way, making the necessary allowance 
for individuality. 



This cut illustrates the direct effect of oval movement drills on the capital letters. The O is used because the point in question is brought out more 
clearly in this letter than could be shown in other capitals—the O being the most closely related to the oval drills. But practically all curves used in all 
the capitals are arcs of the same oval type, and if the movement habit is formed on a misshapen oval drill the curves in the capitals produced later by 
such a movement must, necessarily, be off form. Many teachers and students have asked the author why their capitals were so ill shaped, although 
made with a pure arm movement. The above cut and explanation suggests one of the causes of the trouble. It must also be remembered that correct 
concepts are necessary to produce accurate work. The correct concept of the oval drill is illustrated in number 6. 

Intelligent criticisms by the teacher are necessary in carrying the development of the student through the successive stages of the evolution of the 
penmanship oval rapidly. The student should never be permitted to work on a misshapen oval long enough to form a habit of making it so, if possible 
to prevent it. The criticisms must cover the matters of slant, width, length, proportions, size, uniformity, compactness and line quality. 







' 








. 
















































PART II 

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 


This section is devoted to questions and answers concerning penmanship, ar¬ 
ranged to cpver the following subjects: 

PEDAGOGY POSITION MOVEMENT 

THE CAPITALS THE SMALL LETTERS 

THE NUMERALS 

The aim in this section has been to include, as nearly as possible, every vital 
question that may arise in writing classes and to answer it definitely and con¬ 
cisely. It is believed that this section will be very helpful to teachers and stu¬ 
dents in clearing up disputed questions and uncertainties. 




» 


















i 






« 












* 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 

This Part (II) of this text is devoted to what the author be¬ 
lieves will prove highly valuable to teachers and students of pen¬ 
manship. Under the several heads the author has undertaken to 
answer all the questions he could collect that seemed to him of 
sufficient value to justify their consideration. The questions and 
answers are placed under six departments, as follow: 

1. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON PENMANSHIP PEDA¬ 

GOGY 

2. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON POSITION 

3. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON MOVEMENT 

4. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON THE CAPITAL LET¬ 

TERS 

5. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON THE SMALL LETTERS 

6. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON THE NUMERALS 

Much can be gained from the careful study of this catechism 

on penmanship because it is important to have concise ideas about 
all the elements and details involved in the subject. The study of 
this part of the text will doubtless help the student and teacher in 
arriving at definite conclusions on disputed or questioned points. 
It is always important to know definitely what to think and do. 
Vagueness is one of the most serious defects in the thought 
processes of many teachers and students, although no one seems 
to enjoy such a state. 

The more important phases of the subject are treated at length 
in Part I of this text and when a full discussion is desired ref¬ 
erence should be made to the proper Chapter; but much time may 
be profitably spent in a systematic study of this part of the text. 
Teachers will find these questions and answers especially helpful 
in preparing for examinations and in answering questions that 
arise in the penmanship recitation. Reference should be made to 
the text as frequently as possible until real insight into the sub¬ 
ject becomes a conscious possession. 


The wide neglect and misdirection of penmanship activity in the 
school room is due to the clouds of uncertainty and ignorance 
which beset the teacher’s mind concerning the pedagogy of the 
subject, and also to the lack of ability to execute good writing. 
Teachers wdio can write well and who possess sufficient knowledge 
of the process of teaching it always find time for it in their pro¬ 
grams. This text provides the opportunity for teachers to acquire 
both the knowledge of the pedagogy and the skill in execution nec¬ 
essary to insure success in teaching penmanship. The department 
of questions and answers will be found one of the most helpful in 
the text because it will prove to be one of the most convenient. 

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON PENMANSHIP 
PEDAGOGY 

1. Q. What is the first step in starting first grade pupils in 

writing? 

A. To see that all pupils are provided with the proper ma¬ 
terials. 

2. Q. What are the proper writing materials for the first grade? 

A. The proper writing materials for Grade I are the writing 

book No. 1, a good lead pencil (preferably one with large 
wood but the regular size lead) and paper with wide ruling 
(about % inch). The lead in the pencil should be hard 
enough to hold a point well but not hard enough to require 
gripping or pressure to make a clear line, nor hard enough 
to cut into or easily make an impression in the paper. 

3. Q. Having seen that all pupils have the proper materials, what 

is the next step in starting Grade I in writing? 

A. First explain to them the elements of correct posture of the 
body; second explain the correct manner of holding the 
pencil and the correct position of the paper, illustrating 
each detail and showing each detail by assisting each child 
to assume the same. No detail should be considered taught 


48 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


until the child has been carefully assisted in assuming it 
nor until it is certain that the child understands it. 

4. Q. Having made sure that every pupil is sitting properly and 

is holding the pencil correctly, and that the paper has been 
correctly placed, what is the ndxt step? 

A. The next step is to help the pupil to place the pencil at the 
proper place on the paper, both in relation to the writing 
line and in relation to the margin, for making the first and 
simplest letter, the O. Having placed the pencil at the 
proper point for beginning the O, the letter (O) should be 
drawn by the teacher on the blackboard, making it very 
slowly and calling attention to every detail of curve, slant, 
direction and approach to the writing line. Then show 
how the letter is made to rest on the line; how the up 
stroke curves, slants and advances to the beginning point, 
and, finally, how the letter is closed at the top, how the 
turn is made for the final loop, how the stroke finally ad¬ 
vances downward and toward the right, crossing the long 
up stroke at the middle of the letter, perpendicularly. 
From the finished letter the size and position of the final 
loop should be further explained, and the relative width 
and length should be carefully pointed out. 

5. Q. Having finished explaining and illustrating the first letter 

from the blackboard, what is the next step for this class? 

A. The next step is to have all the pupils try to make what 
has been explained to them, in the manner explained. Each 
pupil should make at least three or four trials without 
further aid from the teacher, after which the teacher 
should give each pupil individual assistance by holding his 
hand with the pencil in it and guiding the fingers in making 
O. Having assisted the pupil in making several letters the 
details should again be pointed out individually, and the 
errors in the pupil’s first efforts should be carefully cor¬ 
rected by marking over his first letters with the correct 
outlines. In this manner each pupil should be assisted 
individually. 


6. Q. Why should the pupil first be permitted to make a few 

efforts unaided and then helped individually to make the 
letter ? 

A. His unaided efforts will enable him to better understand 
the teacher’s explanations and to respond to individual 
help; hut it is detrimental to allow him to continue with¬ 
out specific criticism and individual assistance, because he 
will be building concepts without the necessary experience 
to enable him to form correct concepts or judgments, and 
is practically certain to develop erroneous concepts if left 
to his own ingenuity. 

7. Q. How long should the pupil in this grade be required to 

work on the first letter? 

A. Each one should be required to make a page of the letter 
by writing on each line, except the top line, which should 
be reserved for the heading, and the first line under the 
heading which should be left vacant for appearance and 
for the teacher’s use. The letters should be spaced ac¬ 
curately on the line, as they are in the book. The size of 
the work should be uniform, and should be approximately 
as given in the book. Each pupil should be required to 
make all the lessons required by the schedule (given else¬ 
where in this text) but no pupil should be considered as 
having finished a lesson until he has made a page that 
meets an acceptable standard in the following resp&cts: 
Accuracy of letters; accurate spacing between letters; uni¬ 
formity of letters; light line quality; neatness of page. 

8. Q. What should be required of first grade pupils in the mat¬ 

ter of heading? 

A. This must be determined somewhat by circumstances. In 
the first half of the year it may be necessary for the 
teacher to write the headings for all pupils; but as soon 
as possible each pupil should learn to write at least his 
name (perhaps only first name) on the top line near the 
right end. To this should be added as soon as practicable 
the grade (Gr. I) and from time to time additions should 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


49 


be made until the heading is complete. Special days may 
be assigned for learning parts of the heading as class work. 

9. Q. How should the procedure in presenting successive lessons 
differ, if at all, from that used in lesson one? 

A. Each new letter should be considered of the same im¬ 
portance as the first and should be presented with the 
same elaboration and with the same care to impress the 
perfect form on the pupil’s mind. In no case should the 
pupil be permitted to work his way through a letter without 
strict safeguards being thrown about his efforts by the 
teacher. Left to himself, practically any pupil will go 
astray in forming mental pictures and will often impress 
incorrect forms on his mind so deeply that it is difficult 
thereafter to correct them. Much poor writing is due to 
incorrect concept building in the primary grades. 

10. Q. Why do some children learn to make script more easily 

than others? 

A. Some children learn to make script forms more easily 
than others because their natural mental and physical con¬ 
stitutions are better adapted, and their propaedeutic train¬ 
ing contributes more directly toward this end. 

11. Q. What are some of the elements involved in natural adapta¬ 

bility and in propaedeutic training that affect learning to 
make script froms? 

A. The more conspicuous elements involved in natural adapta¬ 
bility and in propaedeutic training that affect learning to 
make the script form are concept of form and proportions, 
sense of beauty, pride in doing well, refined sensibilities, 
accuracy in following directions, refined sense of touch, 
application, concentration, persistence. A pupil who brings 
these elements into his writing problem has everything in 
his favor for rapid progress; and in proportion as he is 
deficient in these will his progress in this subject be more 
or less difficult. 

12. Q. Is it possible for a pupil who is deficient in the elements 


enumerated in the preceding answer to make satisfactory 
progress in writing without developing these elements? 

A. No, his progress will always be proportional to the develop¬ 
ment of the elements enumerated, in his physical and 
mental nature. 

13. Q. Considering the necessity of establishing these certain 

mental and physical qualities in the pupil, as fundamental 
to learning to write well, how should all the work of the 
pupil be made to contribute to learning to write; and how 
should such a program be made beneficial to the pupil’s 
progress in all other subjects? 

A. The pupil’s pride in doing well should be awakened in all 
he does, both in and out of school; his sensibilities should be 
constantly refined by learning to see beauty in form and 
proportion, and by learning to appreciate refined quality 
in everything; his sense of touch should be improved in 
whatever he handles that he may progress from coarseness 
toward refinement. ■ He should learn to appreciate help 
and direction; his powers of application, concentration and 
persistence should show continual improvement. In carry¬ 
ing out such a program the pupil will be acquiring the best 
elements of an education, and learning to write as well 
as learning all other subjects will be enriched with ever 
increasing pleasure and higher excellence. 

14. Q. What should successive lessons have in common? 

A. Correct instruction concerning position of body, arms, 
hands, pencil, and paper; proper presentation of the les¬ 
son ; proper aim on the part of the pupils to produce ac¬ 
curate forms, to write with fine lines, to space the forms 
correctly on the line, to fill the page correctly, to make the 
page look as beautiful as possible. 

15. Q. In what respects should the presentation of the lessons in 

Grades I, II, and III differ? 

A. In Grade I the lessons should be presented with all possi¬ 
ble attention to details, leaving nothing for the pupils to 



50 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


surmise or guess at or work out through, their own devices, 
In Grade II (assuming that the work in Grade I was prop¬ 
erly done) the presentation should be the same as in 
Grade I, except that in the more general and larger fea¬ 
tures the pupil should be directed to solve his own prob¬ 
lems, and the teacher’s help should be withdrawn to a 
degree from pure instruction, and directed with increasing 
emphasis to criticism. 

In Grade III (assuming that the work was properly pre- 
since, having no background of experience in the subject, 
it is impossible for them to act with safety while relying 
upon their own resources. 

sented in Grades I and II) the teacher’s help should be 
still more largely withdrawn from the function of pure 
instruction, and still further increased in the matter of 
criticism. 

This plan presumes that the pupil will be gradually trained 
to become his own critic and learn to assume the responsi¬ 
bility of his individual problem in learning to write. It is, 
however, of the greatest importance that he be not allowed 
to build his structure on a faulty foundation, which is cer¬ 
tain to result if he is permitted to repeat an error of form 
unchallenged. The fact that so few adults know good 
script forms, and consequently cannot make them, is proof 
that they were not properly taught when first they learned 
to make the letters. 

16. Q. Should the heading of the penmanship practice work be 

different in Grades II and III from that of Grade I? 

A. In Grade II the heading should include the grade, date and 
pupil’s name, at least; and in Grade III it should be com¬ 
plete, including name of school, grade, book, date and 
pupil’s name. 

17. Q. Should the arm movement be attempted in Grades I, II and 

III? 

A. The arm movement should not be attempted in Grades I, 
II and III except in cases where pupils have completed 


Book III with the grade of 95% or above on each lesson 
before the expiration of the term. Such pupils may be 
started on the mere movement drills in Book IV. 

18. Q. To what extent should pupils work on the blackboards in 

connection with penmanship? 

A. Pupils in Grades I and II may work at the blackboard to 
some advantage in learning the correct forms of letters, but 
it is dangerous to have them work much at the boards 
because of the tendency to scribble, write at irregular sizes, 
with irregular slant, in an uneven line, and grip the 
crayon too much. Blackboard work that is not done under 
close supervision is likely to be harmful rather than help¬ 
ful. To have pupils write on the board as mere busy work 
is not practice and is likely to be harmful. During such 
times they should not be told to do something of such 
serious consequence as to develop letter forms, and then 
left to their own devices. In grades above the second it 
may well be doubted whether there can be any gain accru¬ 
ing from blackboard work in penmanship as far as learning 
to write on paper is concerned. 

19. Q. What should be done in regard to the pupils who are in¬ 

clined to write with their left hands? 

A. Left-handed pupils should be changed to the right hand in 
the first grade and in the second grade. In the third grade it 
may be necessary to consider circumstances somewhat, but 
the aim should be to change them in this grade also. In 

. Grade IV a final attempt should be made to make the 
change, and as they commence the arm movement in this 
grade, such a change will be found not altogether difficult 
to make. In grades above the fourth it may be questioned 
whether it is advisable to undertake to bring about this 
change, unless the hearty co-operation of pupils and parents 
be assured. 

20. Q. Is there any danger to the pupil’s welfare, mentally or 

physically, in changing from one hand to the other? * 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


51 


A. It has never been proved to be dangerous in practice. The 
author has changed scores of pupils and has never heard 
of or observed the slightest ill effect. What is thought to 
be dangerous is changing a pupil wholly from one hand to 
the other. This is never accomplished in writing. Changing 
a pupil from left to right hand in writing does not affect 
him in anything else he does. The author does not recall a 
single instance where his changing a pupil from left to 
right hand in writing resulted in the pupil’s becoming 
wholly right-handed. In writing they became right-handed, 
but in all other things they remained left-handed. Consid¬ 
ered in this light it must be helpful to learn to write with 
the right hand, as all psychologists agree that at least no 
harm can result from ambidexterity, and it is usually help¬ 
ful. 

21. Q. Will pupils in Grades I, II and III establish the individual 

slant in writing that will be their natural slant later when 
they learn to use the arm movement? 

A. No, because pupils in Grades I, II and III should make the 
letters as a drawing process, with the fingers, since they 
are not sufficiently developed to undertake the arm move¬ 
ment, and also drawing is the best possible aid to master¬ 
ing accuracy of form. In this finger movement, drawing 
process, the writing will, as a rule, be more nearly vertical 
than it will be later when done with the arm movement. 
This is because the fingers do not have the lateral move¬ 
ment natural to the arm, when they are held in a writing 
position. But pupils in the primary grades should never 
make the letters on a back slant, and if the position is 
correct in all respects all the letters will incline more or 
less toward the right. 

22. Q. Can there be any oral recitation on the part of the pupils, 

especially in the primary grades, in connection with pen¬ 
manship? 

A. Yes, it is a good practice to have the pupils describe orally 
the details of the letter to be used in the day’s practice. 


In such recitations pupils may tell, in succession, the de¬ 
tails they are able to discover. 

23. Q. What are the elements of good writing that should be kept 

constantly in the pupil’s mind, named in the order of their 
importance? 

A. The elements of good writing that must be kept in mind 
by the pupil, in the order of their importance are accuracy 
of form, correct proportions among the letters of the dif¬ 
ferent groups, uniformity of height within the different 
groups, uniformity of slant, uniformity of spacing, quality 
of lines. 

24. Q. What are the elements of good execution of good writing, 

that should be kept constantly in the pupil’s mind, named 
in the order of their importance? 

A. The elements of good execution of good writing, named in 
the order of their importance, are proper posture of the 
body, correct position of the arms, hand (in holding the 
pencil or pen) and paper, and, for pupils in the fourth 
grade or above, the arm movement. Below the fourth grade 
the script forms are to be made with a drawing process. 

25. Q. What, primarily, determines accuracy of writing? 

A. Accuracy of writing is determined, primarily, by concept. 

26. Q. What, secondarily, determines accuracy of writing? 

A. Accuracy of writing is determined, secondarily, by nervous 
and muscular adaptability, or coordination. 

27. Q. What makes writing easy of execution? 

A. Proper position and proper movement make writing easy. 

28. Q. In starting a class in arm movement practice, what are 

the first considerations? 

A. First considerations in starting a class in arm movement 
practice are proper materials, correct position, and a clear 



52 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


understanding of how to produce and develop the arm 
movement. 

29. Q. What is the end to be gained in practicing arm movement 

lessons, that should be made clear to the pupil at the be¬ 
ginning? 

A. The end to be gained in arm movement practice is to form 
the habit of writing with this movement, so that it will 
come into action automatically, or with very slight con¬ 
scious effort, whenever any writing is undertaken. 

30. Q. What are the factors involved in forming the arm move¬ 

ment habit? 

A. The factors involved in forming the arm movement habit 
are attention, repetition, regularity of action, rapidity of 
action, freedom from nervous strain and muscular tension. 

31. Q. Is time an important factor in forming the arm movement 

habit? 

A. Time, as such, is not important in forming any habit; but 
the time required is proportional to the intensity and ex¬ 
clusiveness of concentration and attention. If the concen¬ 
tration is of sufficient intensity a physical habit may be 
formed without regard to time. 

32. Q. How may the intensity and exclusiveness of concentration 

be promoted? 

A. Intensity and exclusiveness of concentration may be pro¬ 
moted by rapidity of movement; as the speed increases the 
concentration becomes more and more intense and ex¬ 
clusive until at last the attention becomes perfectly focused. 

33. Q. How may the arm movement of pupils be brought up to 

sufficient speed to compel perfect concentration? 

A. By counting to the movement drills—continually increas¬ 
ing the rate until the desired speed has been attained. 


34. Q. What is one of the chief dangers to be guarded against in 

rapid arm movement drill? 

A. One of the chief dangers attending rapid arm movement 
drill is gripping the penholder, which indicates tension of 
the writing muscles. 

35. Q. How may the fault of too much gripping of the penholder 

and tension of the writing muscles be detected from the 
practice work? 

A. If the down strokes are heavier than the up strokes it is 
proof that there is too much gripping of the penholder and 
that there is too much tension of the writing muscles. 

36. Q. What are the arm movement drills that precede all letters 

called ? 

A. The arm movement drills that precede letters are called 
mere movement di-ills, because they are used mei’ely to 
develop movement. 

37. Q. What elements should pupils be trained to embody in 

mere movement drills ? 

A. The elements to be embodied in mere movement drills are : 
light lines, correct form, compactness and uniformity. 

3S. Q. Why are mere movement drills made compact? 

A. Mere movement drills are made compact for two reasons : 
1, Because compact work contributes to the possibility of 
speed and regularity. 2, Because compactness has' the 
effect of magnifying or proving the line quality. 

39. Q. How does compactness in mere movement drills prove the 
line quality? 

A. If the lines are of proper fineness they will dry as rapidly 
as made; whereas, if the down strokes are heavier than 
the up strokes the successive strokes will tend to produce 
a blur. This blur may not be noticeable in loosely arranged 
work but will always be in evidence in compact work if the 
lines are not of fine quality. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


53 


40. Q. Why is it important to make ovals in mere movement 

drills of a particular form? 

A. It is important to make the ovals in mere movement drills 
of a particular form because practically all the curves 
used in the capitals are arcs of a particular form of oval, 
and the arm movement habit formed by practicing any 
particular oval form will, inevitably, follow curves in 
making capitals that correspond to the form of oval upon 
which it was trained. 

41. Q. Why is uniformity in mere movement practice important? 

A. Uniformity in mere movement practice is important be¬ 
cause it indicates the degree to which the correlation of 
the writing nerves and muscles and the governing thought 
power has been developed; the degree of automatic action 
attained, and the adequacy of the concept for later penman¬ 
ship improvement. 

42. Q. What is the purpose of the compact oblique straight line 

drill? 

A. The purpose of the compact oblique straight line drill is 
to discover to the pupil his natural slant; to make his 
writing on this slant habitual, and to develop the power of 
making straight down strokes, which play a large part in 
good penmanship. 

43. Q. Why should the direct oval be practiced first? 

A. Because the physiological structure of the arm makes it an 
easier and more natural movement for right-handed be¬ 
ginners. 

44. Q. Is it necessary to practice the indirect oval? 

A. Yes. The fact that it is found to be difficult by most 
pupils, even after having mastered the direct oval quite 
well, is proof that the writing nerves and muscles need the 
training it affords. Also it is used more than the direct 
movement in writing the capital letters. 


45. Q. How long time and how much work should be devoted to 

the mere movement drills? 

A. The purpose of the mere movement drills being to form the 
arm movement habit; to develop the necessary scope of 
movement and the required touch; to establish the correct 
oval form and uniform slant, it follows that length of time 
and amount of work are not determining factors. Mere 
movement drill can never be said to be wholly unnecessary 
until its ends have been fully attained, as explained; but 
it may be said to have accomplished its purpose to a degree 
when it becomes noticeably effective, and this effectiveness 
should be added to continually from grade to grade. 

46. Q. What is the principal difference between the process and 

aims in teaching and learning penmanship in the move¬ 
ment grades, and in a more advanced class, such as busi¬ 
ness colleges, high schools and normal schools? 

A. The principal difference between the process and aims in 
teaching and learning penmanship in the movement grades 
and in business colleges, high schools and normal schools, 
is one of standards more than anything else. In the 
higher schools higher standards should be maintained, both 
in knowledge of the subject and in execution. The process is 
fundamentally the same. 

47. Q. Is great speed more important in practicing the mere move¬ 

ment drills or in practicing the letters? 

A. Speed is more important in practicing the mere movement 
drills than in practicing the letters because in the mere 
movement drills speed is fundamentally necessary in de¬ 
veloping the arm movement habit and arm movement 
power. Speed is also helpful in practicing the letters, and 
more so in practicing the capitals than the small letters, 
but in practicing the letters there is no gain in using more 
speed than is necessary to insure a smooth movement. What 
is meant by a commercial rate of speed for writing words 
and sentences is not the great speed that is so important in 
developing the arm movement. 



54 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


48. Q. How long should a class in arm movement writing con¬ 

tinue on one lesson? 

A. The members of the class should be considered individually 
as fully as possible, and each individual should be required 
to think out and work out each lesson to a meritorious 
standard. This means that he should continue on one 
lesson until practically all the difficult elements have van¬ 
ished, and the lesson can be made with a good degree of 
ease and a satisfactory degree of excellence. 

49. Q. Is it justifiable to try numerous lessons in a single writing 

period to maintain interest or for other reasons? 

A. No. Trying many lessons during a single writing period, 
giving each merely a hurried trial, is always detrimental, 
because it cannot contribute to real mastery of any ele¬ 
ment, drill or letter, and cultivates the habit of trifling. 
Trying many lessons, each briefly, is necessary in teach¬ 
ing theory or in illustrating plans or methods, but is never 
justifiable in regular class work. 

50. Q. Which is better, music, counting, tapping or using a 

metronome for improving regularity, time or rhythm in 
writing? 

A. Counting, if properly done, is much better than any other 
device, because it permits of more accurate adjustment to 
the requirements of the class and to the needs of the drill 
or letter; and it is possible to give emphasis and modify 
the rate at will as occasion demands. The teacher’s voice 
should always be considered of vital importance in the 
class room. 

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON POSITION 

1. Q. What is the correct position of the body for writing? 

A. Sit facing the desk and close to it but not pressing against 
it; rest both feet on the floor; incline the body forward 
slightly at the hips; droop the head enough to form a cor¬ 
rect angle of vision; rest both arms on the desk, forming 


approximately right angles at the elbows; incline the 
body slightly toward the arm not used in writing, so as to 
relieve the writing arm of all weight except its own. 

2. Q. What is the correct position of the paper for writing? 

A. The paper should be placed so the lines will run at right 
angles to the forearm of the writing arm when it is laid 
across the paper at the middle. This will permit the pen 
in the fingers to move along the line when the hand is 
moved right and left by opening and closing the elbow. 

3. Q. What is the correct position of the arms for writing? 

A. The arms should be placed on the desk to form approxi¬ 
mately right angles at the elbows. 

4. Q. What is the correct location of the elbows for writing? 

A. The elbows should be practically at the edge of the desk; 
the point of the elbow of the writing arm may project 
slightly beyond the edge of the desk if it is found that 
the bone rubs on the desk in an annoying manner. 

5. Q. What is the correct rest for the writing arm for writing? 
A. The arm rest for the writing arm is at the swell of the 

forearm, located just forward from the elbow. This con¬ 
stitutes a stationary or fixed rest. 

6. Q. Should the arm rest of the writing arm be movable or 

immovable? 

A. The arm rest of the writing arm should be immovable; the 
arm moves within the skin, which stretches and contracts 
as the movements are produced in writing. 

7. Q. Should the arm ever be permitted to slip on the desk in 

using the arm movement? 

A. It should not. 

8. Q. If not, why not? 

A. Because one of the most important parts of the training in 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


55 


the arm movement Is that of training the nerves and 
muscles in the skin at the arm rest, and this is lost if the 
arm is permitted to slip. 

9. Q. Should the arm ever he raised from the desk for practicing 
the mere movement drills, or other lessons? 

A. It should not. 

10. Q. If not, why not? 

A. Because practice with the arm lifted from the desk cannot 
afford any training for the skin nerves and muscles at the 
arm rest. 

11. Q. What is the correct position of the fingers in holding the 

pencil or penholder? 

A. The pencil or penholder should he held between the second 
finger and the thumb and should cross the second finger 
at about the root of the nail. The first finger should rest 
lightly upon the pencil or penholder. The last two fingers 
should be curved under the hand so the little finger will 
rest on the desk, touching at the nail, along the first 
phalange or at the first joint as may be most serviceable 
to the pupil. 

12. Q. What is the correct angle of the pencil or penholder? 

A. The pencil or penholder should be held at an angle of 
forty-five degrees, or half way between the horizontal and 
perpendicular. 

13. Q. Where should the pencil or penholder point in reference to 

the writing arm? 

A. The pencil or penholder should point between the elbow 
and the shoulder of the writing arm. 

14. Q. Should there Is; any difference between left- and right- 

handed persons in holding the pencil or penholder; or in 
the angle of tie; same or in where it should point with 
reference to the w'riting arm? 


A. There should be no difference. 

15. Q. What is the correct position of the wrist as to direction 

compared with the forearm for writing? 

A. The wrist should be kept straight with the forearm. 

16. Q. Should the wrist be held level or inclined for writing? 

A. It should be inclined. 

17. Q. If inclined, what determines the degree of inclination? 

A. The wrist should be inclined to the degree produced by the 
muscles of the arm when permitted to relax fully. 

18. Q. If inclined, which way should the wrist be inclined, toward 

or away from the body? 

A. Away from the body. 

19. Q. Should the wrist have the same position for all persons? 
A. It should not, but the variation is slight. 

20. Q. Should the wrist be permitted to rest on the desk in 

writing? 

A. In the pre-movement grades (I, II and III) it is not very 
important whether the wrist touches the desk or not, but 
it is advantageous to keep it slightly raised from the desk. 
In all movement grades (commencing with IV) it is of the 
greatest importance that the wrist be always kept slightly 
off the desk or paper to prevent friction. 

21. Q. Is the rest of the little finger on the desk fixed or movable? 
A. It is movable, and is called the “gliding rest.” 

22. Q. Should the wrist ever be bent toward the right or left in 

writing to help in reaching farther? 

A. The wrist should never be bent toward the right or left but 
should always be so held as to keep the hand straight with 
the forearm. 



56 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


23. Q. Where should the pencil or penholder cross the first 

finger, above, at or below the knuckle joint? 

A. It should cross wherever it may be necessary, according to 
the conformation of the particular hand, to maintain the 
correct angle of forty-five degrees. 

24. Q. Should the inside of the thumb be placed flat against the 

pencil or penholder, or should the end of the thumb be so 
placed? 

A. The inside of the thumb should be placed flat against the 
pencil or penholder. 

25. Q. Should the first joint of the first finger be bent up or 

down? 

A. It should always be bent up. 

26. Q. If the first joint of the first finger is bent down while 

writing, what does it indicate? 

A. If the first joint of the first finger is bent down while 
writing, it indicates too much gripping. 

27. Q. Should the hand be permitted to roll over to any degree 

as the writing progresses across the page? 

A. The hand should not be permitted to roll over for writing 
on any part of the line. 

2S. Q. Should the arm or paper be shifted or moved sidewise in 
writing across the page? 

A. The arm should never be shifted from the proper position, 
and the paper need not be shifted when the arm movement 
has been well developed. In the pre-movement grades (I, 
II and III) the paper should be shifted several times in 
writing a full line to accommodate the hand and arm. In 
the earlier movement grades (IV and to a lesser degree 
V) the paper may be shifted once or twice to accommodate 
the meager movement. In Grade VI and above every effort 
should be made to develop sufficient range in the arm 
movement to obviate the necessity of shifting the paper 


at all. Pupils in Grade VII and above should develop suf¬ 
ficient movement to enable them to write easily on any 
part of the line without changing the position of the paper. 

29. Q. Should the paper be moved forward or the writing arm 

backward as the writing progresses fi-om line to line down 
the page? 

A. The paper should be moved forward, so the writing arm 
may always be maintained in a correct writing position. 

30. Q. Should the side of the hand (away from the body) ever 

be permitted to touch the desk in arm movement writing? 
A. No, the hand should never be permitted to tip from the 
body enough to bring the side of the hand to the desk; 
nor should the fingers that support the hand be permitted 
to turn under the hand far enough to bring the hand down 
to the desk. 

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON MOVEMENT 

1. Q. When the fingers alone act in producing writing what is the 

action called? 

A. It is called finger movement. 

2. Q. When the forearm and hand act as a unit with the forearm 

resting on the desk, what is the action called? 

A. It is variously called the arm movement, the forearm move¬ 
ment and the muscular movement. 

3. Q. When the arm is lifted from the desk while writing what 

is the action called? 

A. It is called the whole arm movement. 

4. Q. Under what circumstances should the finger movement be 

used in writing? 

A. The finger movement should be used when great accuracy 
of form is the aim, as in executing what is known as 
engraver’s script; in drawing; in working out details of 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


57 


form for the purpose of improving the concept, as is 
practiced by all experts, and by children who are not old 
enough to practice the arm movement advantageously. 

5. Q. Under what circumstances should the arm movement, fore¬ 

arm movement or muscular movement, as it is variously 
called, be used in writing. 

A. The arm movement, forearm movement or muscular move¬ 
ment, as it is variously called, should be used for all prac¬ 
tical penmanship in producing it as a finished product, and 
for ornamental writing. 

6. Q. When should the whole arm movement be used in writing? 
A. The w T hole arm movement should be used in making letters 

exceeding two inches in height, up to which size the arm 
movement may be used. 

7. Q. When is the whole arm movement used for writing? 

A. The whole arm movement is used for making outlines in 
sign writing, or for large display writing. 

8. Q. Why should children in the primary grades draw the script 

forms w T ith the finger movement? 

A. Because the motor centers in their brains and their motor 
nerves are not sufficiently developed to practice or use 
arm movement economically; that is, with results that 
justify the time and effort required on the part of teacher 
and pupil. 

9. Q. What are the pupils in the primary grades to learn about 

writing if they do not use the arm movement? 

A. They are to learn all the details of position of the body, 
arm, paper and pencil holding; and learn to form correct 
concepts of all the letters and numerals. This is a very 
large program and cannot be exhausted by even the most 
successful teachers. 

10. Q. If pupils in the primary grades learn to draw the letters 


with the finger movement will they be handicapped later 
in undertaking to learn to use the arm movement? 

A. No. Learning to draw does not interfere with learning to 
write, but is helpful to it, because it improves the concepts. 
The motor centers and motor nerves that govern and guide 
the fingers in drawing are different from those that gov¬ 
ern and guide the arm in arm movement writing. Conse¬ 
quently one may draw or use the finger movement in 
writing even into mature life and then learn the arm 
movement successfully, as has been done by thousands of 
students in business colleges and by others. Many ex¬ 
pert penmen have learned the arm movement after reaching 
maturity. 

11. Q. Should pupils in the primary grades who are drawing the 

letters for accuracy to improve their concepts, make them 
rapidly or slowly? 

A. They should make them with sufficient speed to produce 
smooth lines; but slowly enough to enable them to embody 
in the forms made every detail with the greatest possible 
accuracy. 

12. Q. Is the time when pupils may commence arm movement 

practice advantageously determined by educational ad¬ 
vancement, size of pupil or age? 

A. It is determined by age. 

13. Q. At what age may pupils commence arm movement practice 

advantageously ? 

A. At the age when activity or development in motor centers 
and motor nerves is quickened, and which is characteristic 
of the pupil’s arrival at the pre-adolescent period. 

14. Q. Do all persons reach this period at the same age? 

A. They do not, because some persons develop more rapidly 
and mature earlier than do others. 

15. Q. What may be said to be the average age at which the 



58 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


motor centers become sufficiently quickened and the motor 
nerves sufficiently developed to undertake the arm move¬ 
ment advantageously? 

A. At about the age of nine years. 

16. Q. Will all pupils be found equally ready in their physical 

development for the arm movement at nine years of age, 
or at the beginning of Grade IY in school? 

A. No. There will be almost as many degrees of readiness 
as there are individuals. 

17. Q. About what per cent of the pupils just entering the fourth 

grade may be said to be sufficiently developed, physically, 
to make a full success of the arm movement; that is, con¬ 
sidering the grade? 

A. About twenty-five per cent. 

18. Q. About what is the per cent in the grades following the 

fourth grade? 

A. In the fifth grade about forty-five per cent; in the sixth 
grade about seventy-five per cent; in the seventh grade 
about ninety per cent and in the eighth grade and above 
approximately one hundred per cent. 

19. Q. At which period is the per cent of increase the greatest? 

A. In the period covering the latter part of the fifth and the 

sixth grades. 

20. Q. What is the effect of speed in arm movement practice? 

A. Speed is very essential because it causes the rapid de¬ 
struction of nerve and muscle substance, and the conse¬ 
quent rebuilding of the same; because it intensifies mental 
concentration, which determines the adaptability of the 
new muscle and nerve structure; because it promotes the 
formation of the arm movement habit, and leads to im¬ 
provement of the touch or sensitiveness of the writing 
nerves, which necessitates practice in relaxation of the 
writing muscles. 


21. Q. How do continuity and interruptions affect arm movement 

practice? 

A. Since habit forming and cultivating the touch are the chief 
objects of practice, obstacles to these should be as fully re¬ 
moved as possible. Perhaps the worst obstacle is the prac¬ 
tice of making frequent stops; many hesitations; having 
the attention diverted, and working in a spasmodic manner 
generally. Ten minutes of rapid, continuous practice at a 
uniform and uninterrupted rate accomplish more than 
many time ten minutes spent in irregular, haphazard, 
broken practice. 

22. Q. Where are the muscles located that produce the arm move¬ 

ment? 

A. In the shoulder and upper arm. 

23. Q. Where are the muscles located that give great accuracy, 

smoothness, regularity, poise, resiliency to the arm move¬ 
ment? 

A. In the skin at the arm rest. 

24. Q. Which muscles are not used and consequently not trained 

if the arm is permitted to slip on the desk or if lifted from 
the desk while practicing? 

A. The skin muscles at the arm rest. 

25. Q. Does the arm movement run most easily in what is called 

the direct (direction in which O is made) or the indirect 
(opposite) motion? 

A. In the direct motion for right-handed persons. 

26. Q. Why is the direct oval placed first among mere movement 

drills and why are the direct oval letters placed first among 
the capitals? 

A. Because the direct motion is easier for the right-handed 
student than the indirect. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


59 


27. Q. What are the ends to be gained in compact, continuous oval 

movement practice? 

A. The arm movement habit; freedom and regularity of move¬ 
ment ; lightness of touch, and the habit of making the 
curves that recur most frequently in the capital letters are 
gained by such practice. 

28. Q. What is the object of practicing the compact oblique 

straight line drill? 

A. To enable the pupil or student to discover his natural and 
individual slant and to establish the habit of writing 
automatically and uniformly on that slant. 

29. Q. What is the purpose of the link oval drills? 

A. The link oval drills are to add to the mere movement the 
first elements of the capital letter movement. They require 
a greater accuracy, a finer line quality, and a nearer ap¬ 
proach to letter form than do the continuous, compact oval 
drills, if made to merit the same rating. 

30. Q. What is meant by the capital letter movement? 

A The capital letter movement is the arm movement applied 
to making the capital letters, and takes on more and more 
distinct characteristics as habits of making capitals with 
the movement become more and more fixed. It is charac¬ 
terized by curves and continuity, and may be likened to a 
skating or gliding movement. 

31. Q. What is meant by the small letter movement? 

A. The small letter movement is the arm movement applied 
to making the small letters and is distinguished from the 
capital letter movement in that it is broken instead of con¬ 
tinuous, being interrupted with many stops; is adapted to 
making the straight down strokes which preponderate in 
the small letters, and may be likened to walking. 

32. Q. What is the rule that governs the application of the small 

letter movement to the execution of the small letters? 


A. The small letter movement rule is this: Make a quick up- 
and-down movement and stop, for each straight down 
stroke that rests on the writing line. 

33. Q. Should an admixture of the finger movement ever be per¬ 

mitted in arm movement practice? 

A. Strict prohibition should be maintained against the intro¬ 
duction of finger movement in all arm movement practice, 
because the chief aim is to form arm movement habits, and 
this is quickest and best accomplished by adhering to the 
strict use of the arm movement. Expert penmen, however, 
practically all use a slight finger action in making the 
loop letters, as 1, above the line. 

34. Q. Should pupils be required to use the arm movement in all 

their written work as soon as they commence learning the 
arm movement? 

A. No. There is no gain in making such a struggle. There is 
little need of requiring the use of the arm movement in 
general writing until the pupil has completed the lessons 
covering the mere movement phase. If this phase has been 
properly covered, allowing the time specified by the 
schedule, and maintaining a sufficiently high standard, the 
arm movement will come quite largely into action auto¬ 
matically, and it is best, thereafter, to give it every en¬ 
couragement and to require its use as fully as possible. 

35. Q. Will a correct arm movement, used with the correct posi¬ 

tion of the body, arm, hand and paper, ever give the com¬ 
pact oblique straight line drill or the letters a vertical 
position on the paper? 

A. No, not if the writer is normal in physiological structure. 

36. Q. If the drills and letters produced with the proper arm 

movement, used with a correct position, should be slanted, 
how should they slant? 

A. They should slant in the direction in which the writing pro¬ 
gresses. 



60 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


37. Q. Why is this true? 

A. Because the structure of the arm is such that when the 
muscle of the shoulder at the inside of the upper arm con¬ 
tracts and draws the arm forward, the muscle at the outside 
of the elbow will simultaneously draw the forearm slightly 
outward, which makes the up strokes automatically slant 
toward the right (for right hand). Then when the shoulder 
muscle at the outside of the upper arm contracts and draws 
the arm backward, the inside elbow muscle will simul¬ 
taneously draw the forearm inward. The angles of the 
several muscles toward the bones to which they are at¬ 
tached and which they operate are such that the move¬ 
ment of the arm forward causes the hand to swing outward 
slightly more than the movement of the arm backward 
causes it to swing inward, and thus is automatically pro¬ 
duced a progressive movement, as in a rachet, outward 
across the page. 

38. Q. How does the foregoing answer apply to left-handed 

writers? 

A. It does not apply. Left-handed writers are handicapped in 
learning to write with the arm movement because they can¬ 
not take advantage of the automatic movements. Like 
right-handed persons they must progress from left to right, 
across the page, and tests have proven conclusively that 
they must, like right-handed persons, slant their writing 
in the direction in which its execution progresses. This 
means that they are required to operate against the free 
or automatic play of all the muscles employed, and, there¬ 
fore, their struggle is usually harder than is that of right- 
handed persons in learning to write with the arm move¬ 
ment. 

39. Q. Should the muscles of the body, and especially of the 

writing arm, be relaxed for writing? 

A. Yes. 

40. Q. Why is it necessary that they should be relaxed? 


A. Unless there is relaxation there can be no free movement; 
no free circulation of the blood; no smoothness of move¬ 
ment, and consequently little progress. Also, contracted 
muscles cause early fatigue, cramps and spasmodic and 
irregular movements. Gripping of the pencil or penholder 
results from contracted’ muscles, and this produces heavy 
down strokes and hinders the development of touch, or 
writing sensitiveness, which is a strong determining factor 
in mastering penmanship. 

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON CAPITAL LETTERS 

1. Q. In how many groups are the capitals arranged? 

A. The capitals are arranged in eight groups. 

2. Q. What is the purpose of grouping the capitals? 

A. The capitals are grouped to place them in the order of 
their pedagogic and movement simplicity. 

3. Q. Why are the direct oval capitals placed in the first group? 

A. Because they are most nearly related to the oval movement 
in the mere movement drills, and are, therefore, easiest to 
make with the arm movement. 

4. Q. Which capitals have the same initial loop? 

A. The N, M, H, K, Q, Z, X, W, V, U, Y have thp same initial 
loop. 

5. Q. To which groups do the capitals having the same initial 

loop belong? 

A. The capitals having the same initial loop belong to groups 
2, 3 and 4. 

6. Q. What are the strokes which determine the grouping of the 

capitals called? 

A. The strokes which determine the grouping of the capitals 
are called the “controlling strokes.” 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


61 


7. Q. What is the difference in the 2d, 3d and 4th controlling 
strokes ? 

A. In the 2d the long down stroke is as nearly straight as 
practicable for capitals; in the 3d it is a right curve, and 
in the 4th it is a compound curve. 

S. Q. Which capitals have a miniature loop of the same position 
and form near the middle of the letter? 

A. The E. K, B and R each have a miniature loop near the 
middle which is the same form and has the same position 
in each, though in the E the loop projects in the opposite 
direction from the loops in the Iv, B and R. 

9. Q. What is the position of the miniature loop in E, Iv, B 
and R? 

A. It forms a right angle with the slant of the letter in each 
case. 

10. Q. How do the loops below the line in Z, Y and J compare in 

size? 

A. The loops below the line in Z, Y and J are alike in width 
and length. 

11. Q. How do the loops at the tops of S, G and L compare? 

A. The loops at the tops of S, G and L are alike. 

12. Q. How do the loops at the bottoms of Q, D and L compare? 

A. The loops at the bottoms of Q, D and L are alike. 

13. Q. Should the stem strokes or the tops of T and F be made 

first? 

A. The stems of T and F should be made first, following the 
same rule as in making the i and t. 

14. Q. How do the slants of the O and A ovals compare? 

A. The O oval slants the same as the main down strokes in 
the capitals; the A oval slant the same as the main up 
strokes in the capitals. 


15. Q. Which capitals begin with up strokes? 

A. The S, G, I and J begin with up strokes. 

16. Q. Which capital begins below the line? 

A. The J begins below the line. 

17. Q. In which capitals is the second part of even height with 

the first? 

A. The second part of H, Iv, X and W is of even height with 
the first. 

IS. Q. In which capitals is the second part not as high as the 
first? 

A. The second part of N, M, V, U and Y is not as high as the 
first. 

19. Q. Why is the controlling stroke of groups 5 and 6 shorter 

than those of groups 1, 2, 3 and 4? 

A. Because the stems of the controlling strokes of the letters 
in groups 5 and 6 do not reach the full height of these let¬ 
ters. 

20. Q. Which capitals have two crossings at the same point? 

A. The I and the J each have two crossings at the same point. 

21. Q. How do the crossings of I and J stand in reference to the 

writing line? 

A. The crossings in the I are above the line and in the J 
they are at the line. 

22. Q. In which capitals must the pen be lifted for making the 

second part? 

A. The pen must be lifted in the H, Iv, X, T and F for making 
the second part. 

23. Q. How do the loops in I and J compare? 

A. The top loop in I is half the width of the top loop in J and 
slightly wider than the lower loop in J. 



62 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


24. Q. How do the two loops in J compare in length? 

A. The lower loop in J is two-thirds as long as the upper loop. 

25. Q. The main stem, lower loop and final stroke in L are the 

same as corresponding parts of which other capital? 

A. The stem, lower loop and final stroke in L are the same as 
corresponding parts of the D. 

26. Q. Which capital could most simply be converted into Y? 

A. The U could most simply be converted into Y. 

27. Q. Are the long down strokes of Y and J straight or curved? 
A. The long down strokes of Y and J are straight. 

28. Q. Which capital has the longest stroke? 

A. The J has the longest stroke. 

29. Q. Are there any round joinings at the bottom of W? 

A. No, there are no round joinings at the bottom of W. 

30. Q. Does the final stroke of the V turn toward or away from 

the first part, at the top? 

A. The final stroke of the V turns away from the first part, 
at the top. 

31. Q. In which capitals does the pen touch the base line at least 

twice? 

A. In the A, N, M, H, Iv, Q, Z, X, W, U, Y, D, B, R, S, G, L, I 
and J the pen touches the line twice. 

32. Q. Does the P finish with an upward or downward movement? 
A. The P finishes with an upward movement. 

33. Q. How does the third part of the W compare in height with 

the second parts of V, U and Y? 

A. The third part of the W does not extend as high as the 
second parts of the V, U and Y. 


QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON SMALL LETTERS 

1. Q. Into how many groups are the small letters divided as to 

height? 

A. The small letters are divided into four groups as to height. 

2. Q. How are the groups designated and which letters belong to 

each group? 

A. The groups are designated minimum, medial, semi-extended 
and extended. The minimum group comprises the a, c, e, 
i, m, n, o, u, v, w and x, which are all one height and of 
the least height among the small letters, being one-third the 
height of the capitals. The medial group comprises the r 
and s, which are slightly higher than the minimum letters. 
The semi-extended group comprises the d, p and t, which 
are extended to five-sixths of the full height of the capitals. 
The extended group comprises the b, f, g, h, j, k, 1, q, y and 
z of which the upper loop letters extend to the full height 
of the capitals, and those having lower loops extend two- 
thirds as far below the line as the capitals extend above 
the line. 

3. Q. How does the loop in the p below the line compare with the 

loops of f, g, j, q, y and z below the line? 

A. The loop in the p below the line is half as wide and three- 
fourths as long as the loops of f, g, j, q, y and z. 

4. Q. How do the loops of the d and p compare? 

A. The loops of the d and p are the same in width and length. 

5. Q. What is meant by the term “tick stroke?” 

A. The term “tick stroke” refers to the minute strokes used in 
F as a finish of the stem, and in the b, o. v and w, in 
making the slight retrace just preceding the final stroke in 
each. 

6. Q. Not counting the tick strokes, how many down strokes are 

used in making all the small letters? 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


63 


A. Not counting the tick strokes forty down strokes are used 
in making all the small letters. 

7. Q. Not counting the tick strokes, how many of the down 

strokes in the small leters are straight? 

A. Not counting the tick strokes, thirty-two of the down 
strokes in the small letters are straight. 

8. Q. Which small letters have curved down strokes? 

A. The a, c, d, g, o, p, q and s have curved down strokes. 

9. Q. Which small letters have no straight lines? 

A. The c, o and s have no straight lines. 

10. Q. From which letters are the initial strokes omitted when 

they are used in commencing words or when they are used 
alone ? 

A. The initial strokes are omitted from the oval letters a, d, 
g, o and q when they are used to commence words or when 
they are used alone. 

11. Q. How does the slant of the a oval compare with that of the 

o oval? 

A. The slant of the o oval is like the slant of the up strokes in 
n and other letters, and the slant of the o oval is the same 
as the slant of the down strokes of n and other letters. 

12. Q. Which two letters are exactly alike in form ? 

A. The h and y are exactly alike in form. 

13. Q. Which two letters have the same form of oval and loop? 

• A. The d and p have the same form of oval and loop. 

14. Q. If the loop of 1 were placed on the top of the oval of q 

which letter would be formed by the two loops and which 
letter between the two loops? 

A. If the loop of 1 were placed on the ovel of the q the two 


loops would make f and the a will stand between the 
loops as the top part of the q. 

15. Q. Which letters have the same form of oval and joined fol¬ 

lowing strokes? 

A. The a, d and q have the same oval and joined following 
strokes. 

16. Q. The last part of which letters is like the second part of 

the h? 

A. The last part of n and m is like the second part of h. 

17. Q. Parts of which letters are the same as the v? 

A. The part of b below the crossing of the loop and the last 
part of w are the same form as the v. 

IS. Q. On how many letters could the cross of the x be placed and 
make x of each letter? 

A. The cross of the x could be placed across the second part 
of h, the last part of n and m and the first part of y and 
make a correct form of x in each instance. 

19. Q. Which two letters are modified to make “final” letters of 

them ? 

A. The two letters that are modified to make final letters are 
d and t. 

20. Q. How* do the h and k compare in width between the two 

straight down strokes where they touch the line? 

A. The space in the k is two-thirds as wide in the h between 
the two straight down strokes where they touch the line. 

21. Q. What is the rule of spacing between words? 

A. No vertical space is left between words when both the 
introductory and final strokes are used, the introductory 
stroke of the succeeding word beginning under the final 
stroke of the preceding word. If the introductory stroke 
is omitted from the firfet letter of the succeeding word the 



64 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


space left by the omission of such a stroke is left between 
the words. 

22. Q. If the loops were cut off at the crossings in b, d, f, 1 and q 

which letters would the remaining parts form? 

A. The remaining part of b would be v; of d and q would be 
a, and of f and 1 would be i. 

23. Q. Why is the d made with a loop instead of like t? 

A. The d is made with a loop because it can be made faster 
and with less liability to make it poorly than would be the 
case if it were made like t. It does not greatly injure the 
d if the loop be made slightly larger or smaller than the 
standard form. In such a form as the t practically no 
variation is permissible. There being no stop in the motion 
in the loop, it permits of greater speed than is possible in 
a retraced stroke as used in t. 

24. Q. Where, in relation to the line, do the loops below the line 

cross or close? 

A. The loops below the line all cross or close at the line. 

25. Q. Where, in relation to the line, do the loops above the line 

cross ? 

A. The loops above the line all cross at the height of i. 

26. Q. Where, in relation to the line, do the initial up and the 

down strokes of the t join? 

A. The initial up and the down strokes of the t join at the 
height of the i, except in the final t which is open to the 
top. 

27. Q. If the lower loop and the lower part of the final oval of 

p were omitted, which letter would remain? 

A. If the lower loop and the lower part of the final oval of p 
were omitted the remaining part would be the final t. 


2S. Q. The first part of the z is like the first part of which other 
letters ? 

A. The first part of the z is like the first part of n and m. 

29. Q. In which letters may the complete form (except the dot) 

of i be found? 

A. The complete form of i (except the dot) is found in the 
a, d, f, 1, q, t, u and w. (It is very slightly modified in the 
a, d and q). 

30. Q. How do the first and second parts of the w at the top 

compare in width? 

A. The second part of the w at the top is two-thirds as wide as 
the first part. 

31. Q. What is the rule for making final up strokes on the final 

letters in word? 

A. Every final letter should be finished with a final up stroke, 
except the “final” d. 

32. Q. What is the rule for omitting initial strokes of the first 

letters of words commencing with small letters? 

A. Initial strokes should be omitted from all oval small let¬ 
ters used at the beginning of words; that is, from a, c, d, g, 
o and q. 

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON THE NUMERALS 

.1. Q. Is the general height of the numerals the same as the 
minimum small letters? 

A. No. The general height of the numerals is one and one- 
half times that of the minimum small letters. 

2. Q. Are all the numerals of even height? If not, explain ex¬ 
ceptions. 

A. The numerals are all of even height except the last stroke 
of the 4 and the long stroke in the 6, which extend higher 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


65 


than the others; and the long strokes in the 7 and 9, which 
extend lower than the others. The 4 and 6 are twice the 
height of the minimum small letters, and the long strokes 
in 7 and 9 are the same length as the long down stroke in t. 

3. Q. What are some similarities or likenesses between some of 

the numerals and some of the letters? 

A. The 2 is the same form as the Q and is half the height of Q. 
The long strokes in 7 and 9 are the same as the long stroke 
in t. The 0 is the same form as o and is one-half higher. 
The oval and part of the long down stroke of 9 are the 
same form as a but slightly smaller; they are also like part 
of g. The 6 inverted is the same form as the second con¬ 
trolling stroke, but with the loop half the size and the 
stem two-thirds as long. The 8 inverted is practically a 
correct S, but only half as large. 

4. Q. Does the 1 have an introductory up stroke? 

A. No. The 1 is formed of only a straight down stroke. 

5. Q. Does the 2 touch the line at one or two points? 

A. The 2 touches the line at two points. 

6. Q. What is the position of the small loop near the middle of 

the 3? 

A. The small loop near the middle of the 3 slants downward 
toward the right. 

7. Q. Does the 4 extend below the line? 

A. No. The 4 does not extend below the line. 

S. Q. How do the three strokes of the 4 compare in length? 

A. The three strokes in the 4 increase in length in the order 
in which they are made. 

9. Q. How many angular joinings has the 5? 

A. The 5 has two angular joinings. 


10. Q. What is the position of the stroke extending toward the 

right from the top of the straight down stroke of the 5? 

A. The stroke extending toward the right from the straight 
down stroke of the 5, has a horizontal position. 

11. Q. Is the stroke which extends toward the right at the top 

of the straight down stroke of the 5 joined to the straight 
down stroke? 

A. Yes, the two strokes are joined with an angle. 

12. Q. What kind of stroke is used to begin the 7? 

A. A tick stroke is used to begin the 7. 

13. Q. What is the form of the horizontal stroke across the top 

of 7? 

A. The horizontal stroke across the top of 7 is an equal com¬ 
pound curve. 

14. Q. Which is the beginning point of the 8? 

A. The beginning point of the 8 is the end of the curved 
stroke which is made from right to left across the top. 
The full oval curve at the top is made first and the loop at 
the bottom is made in the same direction followed in 
making the loop of g. 

15. Q. Is the 9 closed at the top? 

A. Yes, the 9 is closed at the top. 

16. Q. Is the 0 closed at the top? 

A. Yes, the 0 is closed at the top. 

17. Q. Are the numerals suited to arm movement drill? 

A. Some of them are and some are not suited to arm move¬ 
ment drill. The 2, 3, 6, S and 9 are best suited to arm 
movement drill. 

IS. Q. Why should the numerals be particularly well learned? 

A. Because they nearly always represent values, and each 



66 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


must be read for itself; that is, they cannot be read by 
context, as is frequently the case in reading words. 

19. Q. What are some of the dangers arising from poorly made 
numerals? 

A. If the 3 does not have the full oval form at the top and the 
5 is made with a curve instead of a straight down stroke 
at the top, and does not have the two parts joined, the 3 
and 5 are often confused. 

If the 1 has an introductory up stroke and the 7 does not 
have the tick stroke these two numerals are easily confused. 
If the 7 is made with a plain curve (downward) and the 
9 is left far open these two are likely to be confused. 
The 2 made without a loop at the top or bottom and fin¬ 
ished with a stroke practically straight and slanted upward, 
has been mistaken for a check mark. 


The 4 made without the angle at the left, but with a con¬ 
tinuous curve in one stroke instead of two straight strokes, 
and the 8 left open at the top and with an accidental break 
in the right side of the lower loop, has caused confusion 
between the 4 and 8. The 4 should always have the angle 
at the left, and the two strokes at the beginning and 
finishing of the 8 should always cross, to make both 
numerals safe. 

The up stroke of the 0 turned in carelessly at the side has 
made confusion between the 0 and 6. 

20. Q. What counts may be used in practicing the numerals with 
the arm movement? 

A. The count of 1—2—3 is adapted to the 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8; and 
the count of 1—2 is adapted to the 6 and 9. The 1 and 0 
are made to a single count. 



PART III 

CHART PRESENTATION 

This section is devoted to a chart presentation of the Hansam 
System of Plain Penmanship. All the letters, capital and small, 
and the numerals,* are presented in large, strong outlines with staff 
ruling. The grouping, which is one of the strong features of the 
Hausam System, is illustrated and explained. It will be found that 
this system has been thoroughly organized and presents a basis for 
study and practice that distinguishes it very definitely from all 
others. 


























r 


‘ 











* t 
























1 















# 













* 





THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


CHART PRESENTATION OF THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF 
PRACTICAL PENMANSHIP 

The ultimate aim of a correctly organized course in writing 
must be to give the student correct concepts of all the script forms 
and the ability to execute them with the arm movement. In at¬ 
taining these ends there must be taken into account several sequen¬ 
tial phases, each of which must be given due consideration. It 
thus becomes necessary to understand the whole process of learn¬ 
ing to write correctly in order to be able to select the best styles 
of script forms and arrange them so they will best serve every re¬ 
quirement in the process. Since the finished product must be 
executed with the arm movement, it follows that the forms to be 
executed must be adapted to the peculiar elements of action that 
constitute the arm movement; that they must, in fact, be deter¬ 
mined by the peculiar elements of action that constitute the arm 
movement. It thus follows that correct forms, as determined by 
the arm movement, are not arbitrary designs, but are uniform 
resultants, varying only in details of proportions, size, slant and 
spacing as the elements of the movement vary—these variations 
being determined physiologically. 

Considered merely from the standpoint of legibility; that is, 
omitting all consideration of arm movement requirements, an 
indefinite number of forms may be accepted of many of the let¬ 
ters. The same is true when the forms are considered wholly 
from the standpoint of drawing. It therefore follows that the 
form building or drawing phase of Grades I, II and III does not 


enter, materially, into the matter of selecting forms. It will 
thus be understood that because authors of writing books are 
frequently not masters of the arm movement, and do not under¬ 
stand its development or requirements, they often place in their 
books forms that are ill adapted to if not impossible of successful 
execution with the arm movement. The only safe course to pursue 
is to use the same forms in the pre-movement grades that must be 
used when the arm movement phase is reached, and base all 
selctions upon the arm movement requirements. 

What has been said about the selection of letter forms applies 
also to the arrangement or classification of the letters for teach¬ 
ing purposes. In the pre-movement grades practically any group 
may be placed first and the others may be taken up in almost 
any order, although it is important that the letters be grouped 
as they are in this course, and that the letters occupy the places 
assigned in the several groups as here given. In the arm move¬ 
ment grades, however, the letter forms, the grouping, the assign¬ 
ments within the groups and, for the most part, the order of the 
groups are determined by the requirements of the elements of the 
arm movement and are as fixed as the arm movement itself. The 
basis of penmanship pedagogy as far as the relation of form and 
the arm movement is concerned, is to be found in the foregoing 
Italicized statement, and since the forms and grouping presented 
in this text are required in teaching the arm movement to the best 
advantage they are adopted for the pre-movement grades as well, 
thus reducing the whole course to the simplest terms. 


70 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


/ 



7 


4 



8 







THE CONTROLLING STROKES OF THE CAPITAL 

LETTERS 

The eight strokes presented herewith are the chief or charac¬ 
teristic strokes of the eight groups of capitals and should be 
studied until all their details are clearly understood. In learning 
to make the capitals either by drawing them, as in Grades I, II 
and III, or with the arm movement, as in all grades above the 
third, these Controlling Strokes may be said to represent fully half 
the work required to master the letters. This is true because, in 
most cases, the remaining parts of the letters are less difficult to 
master than the initial or Controlling Stroke. 

Number 1 is a plain ellipse- or penmanship oval, being about two- 


thirds as wide as long (to be more exact three-fifths as wide as 
long) and controlling or governing group I comprised of O, C, E, A. 
Number 2 has the initial oval used in thirteen capitals. In this 
stroke the oval is followed by a long down stroke, practically 
straight and slanted like the oblique straight line drill. This initial 
oval is one-third the length of the capitals, and is the same length 
in eleven capitals, being slightly longer in T and F. In number 
3 the long down stroke is a full right curve and in number 4 the 
corresponding stroke is a compound right and left curve, with the 
initial oval the same as in the three preceding strokes (2, 3 and 4). 
Number 5-6 is a compound left and right curve and must be made 
shorter than the regular height of capitals to accommodate the 


































































THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


71 


other parts of the letters T, F, D, P, B, R which employ this 
Controlling Stroke. Number 7 embodies the same kind of Stroke 
as 5-6 but is made the full length of capitals. The loop at the 
top is half the length of the stroke and is the same in each letter 
in this group—S, G and L. The two forms under number 8 are 
different particularly in that the form (b) is twice as wide as 
the form (a) and the down stroke is straight in b and curved in a. 

It must be perfectly obvious to every one who has given the 
matter even the most casual consideration that the ordinary alpha¬ 
betical arrangement of the letters has no significance whatever in 
connection with penmanship pedagogy. No letter in the alpha¬ 
betical order with which all are familiar has been so placed out 
of any reference to teaching or learning to write the letter. 
Realizing this, the organizer of a penmanship course that is to 
embody the elements of pedagogy is confronted at the outset with 
the necessity of rearranging the letters according to pedagogical 
requirements. This the author has undertaken to do and in his 
efforts he has been guided by the following principles: 

1. Grouping the capitals according to their dominant or com¬ 
mon features, designated their “ Controlling Strokes.” 

2. Arranging the groups in the order of their pedagogic sim¬ 
plicity. 

3. Arranging the letters within the groups in the order of their 
pedagogic simplicity. 

An examination of the capitals will satisfy any inquiring mind 
almost instantly upon the first of these principles—that of de¬ 
termining to which group each of the several capitals belongs, since 
this seems to admit of no other solution than that offered by the 
author. The only wonder among those who have examined this 
grouping seems to be that this had not been done before. But the 
second principle opens a field for a good deal of pedagogic specu¬ 
lation and experimentation; and the term pedagogic simplicity im¬ 
mediately occupies the center of the field, demanding that it be 
defined and elucidated. The third principle is comparatively free 
from complications, and careful analysis will convince almost 
every one that the author’s arrangement is correct, even without 
following his argument. 


The order of pedagogic simplicity as applied to the script 
capitals in learning to execute them must be considered either 
from the standpoint of form or of the writing movement, or both. 
It is, of course, possible that one letter may be of more simple 
construction than another and yet be more difficult to execute. 
Thus the straight line is more simple than an ellipse, but the 
ellipse is more easily executed with the arm movement than is the 
straight line. The matter of continuity of strokes is very im¬ 
portant from the arm movement standpoint, as are also the mat¬ 
ters of minute loops and their locations. These are not of equal 
importance when judged from the standpoint of forms for draw¬ 
ing, merely. Primary pupils in learning to draw letter forms 
accurately, often make the H, a letter of considerable com¬ 
plexity when judged from the arm movement standpoint, better 
than the O, which is decidedly the easiest of the entire list as an 
arm movement letter. 

The questions to be determined are: 1. Shall the one order of 
grouping be adhered to in all grades, regardless of the part the 
arm movement plays; and 2. Shall the groups be arranged to best 
accommodate the primary pupils who are chiefly concerned with 
learning the forms, or the advanced grades where the pupils are 
chiefly concerned with mastering the arm movement. It seems 
that sound pedagogy would demand that a single form of group¬ 
ing be recognized for all grades, since simplicity and unity are 
cardinal pedagogical principles. The problem is, therefore, re¬ 
duced to the second question, which requires some elucidation. 

There are two factors in teaching and learning writing; viz., 
1. Ability to think correct script forms; and 2. Power to execute 
these forms at a speed and xvith an ease adequate to practical 
needs. It is certain that the ability to think correct script forms 
is fundamental and that no kind of power could execute good 
letters if they are not clearly defined in the mind. It therefore 
follows that the first phase of learning to write is to form correct 
mental images of the letters. This is the work of the primary 
grades. In building these images in the mind the manner of 
reproducing them on paper should be such as to best promote the 
work of correct concept building. This means that they should 
be drawn during the period when the child’s motor organism is 



72 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


insufficiently developed to execute them advantageously with the 
arm movement and at the same time bring the attention to every 
detail in such a way as to build a correct concept of the letter; 
that is, in the first three grades. 

But since the phase of mere concept building is only the founda¬ 
tion of the building we are undertaking to construct; and since 
the superstructure; that is, mastering the arm movement, con¬ 
stitutes the larger part of the work as measured by the amount of 
time and energy that must be expended, we are forced to conclude 
that the grouping should be arranged to accommodate the phase 
of developing the arm movement rather than that of learning to 
form concepts of the letters. This is what the author has done. 

As far as mere concept building is concerned there are doubtless 
other forms of grouping that would be wholly justifiable and even 
the common alphabetical order would perhaps be quite satisfac¬ 
tory ; but when considered from the arm movement standpoint no 
other arrangement of grouping seems to meet every need as well 
as the one presented herewith. 

Accepting, then, the ground that the grouping of the capitals 
should be such as to best accommodate the developing of the arm 
movement, the questions arise as to which of the arm movements 
is easier, if any, and how do the various movements, if there be 
several, rank as to simplicity, and what is their sequential order. 
These questions are of the greatest importance in constructing a 
system of penmanship and in teaching the subject successfully. 

Almost unlimited observation and experimentation have proved 
that the several movements required to produce writing with the 
arm movement take their places in the scale of increasing diffi¬ 
culty in the following order: 

1. The direct ellipse, or as popularly known, the direct oval. 
This is the oval made in the direction in which the O is made, 
and is the first kind of arm movement of which direct application 
can be made to writing. 

2. The indirect oval or ellipse, which is made in the direction 
opposite to that used in number 1, and is used in a more or less 
modified form in twenty-two or all but four of the capitals. 

3. The oblique straight line, which is a forward-backward mo¬ 
tion without making turns at the ends, and which is used in a 


number of capitals and in twenty-three of the twenty-six small 
letters. 

While the arm movement is capable of describing many forms 
other than the three enumerated there are no others that may be 
designated as admitting of being practiced as distinct or simple 
forms of arm movement drills with direct application to learning 
to write. All the other drills are modifications or combinations 
of these. It is, therefore, in relation to these three fundamental 
forms of the arm movement that the grouping of the capitals must 
be made. 

Since the direct ellipse or oval movement ranks first in sim¬ 
plicity it follows that the capitals produced with this form of 
movement, or with the least modification of this movement must 
be placed first, and the O, C, E and A, made with the direct oval 
movement, comprise the first group. Since the remaining twenty- 
two capitals employ the indirect oval more or less, and many of 
them also employ the straight line movement, they must all take 
their places according to the laws of movement. The factors to 
be taken into account in grouping and classifying the remaining 
capitals are such as: the preponderance of one form of move¬ 
ment; the extent to ivhich the second and third forms of movement 
are employed in the same letter with the first form; whether or 
not the pen must he lifted in making the letter; whether or not 
the pen must he brought to a stop within the letter, and at which 
part or parts of the letter the stops occur; whether the letter be¬ 
gins with an upward or downward movement; whether or not it 
has minute loops and at which part or parts of the letter these ap¬ 
pear, and other considerations. 

The relative values of these factors cannot be determined by a 
mere process of abstract reasoning alone, but must take into ac¬ 
count the results of actual experimentation continued through long 
periods of time and covering a wide range of cases. Such ex¬ 
perimentations have been conducted by the author and after re¬ 
arranging the capitals many times, always by eliminating ques¬ 
tionable and adopting satisfactory assignments, he has finally 
arrived at the classification presented in this text which he con¬ 
siders permanent. For many years no sufficient reason has been 
found for making any further change in the arrangement. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


73 


There are definite reasons for placing every capital where it is 
now to be found in the author’s grouping and the painstaking 
student will be able to discover these reasons by studying and 
practicing the letters from the standpoints already mentioned. 

The small letters admit of a like pedagogic arrangement and 
are presented in such a manner in the advanced sections of the 
system. They are paired with the capitals for good reasons and 
much can be gained by comparing the heights and proportions of 
capitals and small letters thus placed. 


with the Controlling Stroke of the group except for the addition 
of a terminal stroke. The C is placed second because it ranks 
second in arm movement simplicity. The initial oval in the C is 
less difficult to make (because it is larger and appears at the 
beginning of the letter) than the minute loop in the E; and the 
single long down stroke in the C is easier than the two shorter 
down strokes of the E. The A is placed fourth because of the 
short turn at the bottom of the long down stroke, which is more 
difficult to make than the broad turn found at the bottoms of 




A careful analysis of the four letters (O, C, E, A) of this group 
will convince anyone that they are arranged in the order of 
their pedagogic simplicity, which is the rule followed in all the 
grouping. The small letters are paired with the capitals for con¬ 
venience in studying and explaining them. The O is identical 



O, C and E. The A is also the most difficult of the group be¬ 
cause of the abrupt stop and angular joining between the up 






















































74 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


stroke and the final down stroke. The oval of the A is much like 
the left half of the O oval. The up stroke should have the least 
possible curve so as to avoid making a loop or too much retrace in 
placing the final down stroke. The correctness of this grouping 
will become more and more evident with continued arm movement 
practice and detailed study of all the elements of movement and 
form involved. To incline the final loop of the O downward, 
finishing with a downward stroke; to slant the minute loop in 
the E downward toward the right; to place the initial oval of 
the C on the regular slant with the entire letter, and to close the 
A at the top are all important elements of correct form. 






The Controlling Stroke is identical in the four capitals (N, M, 
H, K) of the second group. They are placed in the order given in 
conformity to the rule of pedagogic simplicity. Letters which do 
not require the lifting of the pen are, if otherwise not more diffi¬ 
cult, more easily executed than those in which the pen must be 
lifted. Of the two capitals in this group which do not require 
the lifting of the pen, the N is more easily made than the M. This 
necessitates placing the N first. It is obvious that the M must 
occupy second place. As between the two capitals coming under 
this Controlling Stroke that require the lifting of the pen, the H is 
more simple, when judged from the arm movement standpoint, 
than the K, for the following reasons: The second down stroke 










































































THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


75 


of H, being a plain curve and straight stroke is more easily exe¬ 
cuted than is the double compound curve of the second part of the 
K. Also the larger connecting loop between the two parts of the 
H, coming after a stop in the movement, is more easily made than 
the smaller loop used in connecting the two parts of the K, and 
made without stopping the movement. These reasons suffice to 
give the K the final place in the group. 

The joining at the bottom of the first part of the N and at the 
bottom of the first and second parts of the M should have the 
least possible retrace, and should never be a loop. Th£ top of 
the connecting loop in the H should never extend to more than half 
the height of the letter and the minute loop in the K should be 
at about the middle. The second parts of N and M should be of 
the same height and width and the second parts of H and K 
should commence alike. There should be no loop or retrace at the 
bottom of the second part of the H, where the connecting loop 
begins. The initial loop in the Controlling Stroke is the same 
as already described and as found in many capitals. 

The Controlling Stroke is identical in the four letters (Q, Z, X, 
W) of this group. The initial loop is the same as in the pre¬ 
ceding group. The long down stroke of the Controlling Stroke 
is a plain right curve, and is slightly lengthened in the Q' to pro¬ 
vide for the horizontal loop at the bottom. The rule of pedagogic 
simplicity will be seen to be employed in arranging the letters 
in this group, as explained for the preceding groups. Of the two 
letters belonging to the group which do not require the pen to be 
lifted, the Q is easily the more simple of execution with the arm 
movement, and must, therefore, be given first place. The Z being 
more closly related to the Q than either the X or W, and also 
being made without lifting the pen must be placed second. As 
between the X and the W there can be no question about the 
necessity of having the X precede the W under the rule of 
simplicity. The second parts of the X and the second and third 
parts of the W are composed entirely of curves, although the 
second long down stroke of the W is but slightly curved. The final 
up stroke of the W extends to two-thirds the full height of the let¬ 
ter. The two parts of the X should touch at the middle of the let¬ 


ter. The Q touches the writing line at two points. The loop below 
the line in the Z crosses at the line. The loop in the Z extends two- 
thirds as far below the line as the length of the upper part above 
the line. The pen need not be lifted in making the W, but it is 













































76 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 




permissible to lift it between the Controlling Stroke and tbe second 
part, if sufficient care is used in replacing it to make a perfect 
joining of tbe two parts. No retrace should be made at the 
three angular joinings in the W and loops should never be made 
at these places. It should be noted that in the correct form of 
the third Controlling Stroke the lower end of the initial loop is 
vertical to the final point of the long down stroke. 

The Controlling Stroke has the same initial loop as used in the 
numbers II and III, and the long down stroke is a compound right 
and left curve, giving the effect of being practically straight for 
a distance near the middle part of the stroke. The Controlling 
Stroke is identical in the three capitals (V, U, Y). According to 
the rule of pedagogic simplicity the three capitals take the places 
assigned without leaving any room for argument. Reasons for 
the perticular assignment will be quickly forthcoming to the stu¬ 
dent as he studies the letters and practices them with the arm 


movement. The second parts of all three capitals are of even 
height and five-sixths the full height of the letters. The final 
stroke of the Y has a decided outward turn (left curve) near the 
top. The final down stroke in U is straight for fully half its 
length and in the Y the final down stroke is straight throughout 
its length. The loop below the line in the Y is the same length 
and width as the corresponding loop in Z—two-thirds as long as 
the full length of the upper part. It should be noted that the 
loops below the line in Y and y are alike in all respects. The U 
should always be finished with a down stroke unless joined to the 
following small letter, which is not always a good practice, be- 


4 
































































THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


77 



cause there are persoDS who make a W that is easily confused 
with the U. The y is like h inverted. Special care is often re¬ 
quired to keep from making the Y too wide and to make the 
second part the right height. It will be noted that the Y is 
narrower between the down and up strokes than are the U and Y, 
which is due to the up stroke, it being a compound curve in the V 
and a plain right curve in both U and Y. 

A clear understanding of details is the first requisite in learning 
to make good letters and each letter should be studied very 
critically before the practice is commenced and the same critical 
study should be continued during the practice. 

The Controlling Stroke of this group is a compound curve stroke, 
made downward and commencing slightly less than the regular 
capital letter height above the writing line. It is an equal com¬ 
pound curve; that is, half (upper) left curve, and half (lower) 
right curve. It is identical in all three capitals (T, F, D) of this 
group. The initial ovals in the tops of T and F are the same 
form, as to proportions, as the initial ovals in the Controlling 
Strokes of groups II, III and IV, but are larger. The long strokes 
in the top parts of T and F are placed horizontally, but appear 






























































78 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



to droop at the right end. The main stem strokes in T and F and 
the tops do not conflict. The stem strokes are made short enough 
to permit of making proper top strokes without making these 
letters higher than other capitals when completed. The loop at 
the bottom of the D is the same form as the loops in the Q and L, 
and lies flat on the writing line. The finishing stroke of the D 
requires special attention to give the final oval the correct posi¬ 
tion. The main oval of the D is comparatively narrow, it being 
about one-third as wide at its widest point as the full height of 
the letter. The minute stroke at the terminal point of the cross 
stroke in the F (called a “tick” stroke), is close to the stem 
stroke, and is straight and short. It is at the middle of the stem 
stroke of the letter, but slightly below the middle of the com¬ 
pleted letter. The order in which the letters of this group are 
placed may be questioned by some as to the correct place for the 
D, but extensive experiments have convinced the author that it 
belongs where shown. There can be no question about the T and 
F or about the correctness of placing the three letters in this 
group. The second t and d are called “final” letters and are used 
only at the ends of words. 

The Controlling Stroke of this group is the same as for the 
preceding group (Y). The capitals of this group very clearly de¬ 
mand a separate classification and constitute perhaps the most 
closely related letters in the capital alphabet. Practically to the 
































































THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


79 


point which completes the P all three letters are identical. To the 
point that completes the minute loop the B and R are identical. 
It thus follows that the mastery of the P means almost mastery of 
the B and R. There can be no question as to the correctness of 
the grouping. In practicing the P it should be finished with an 
upward stroke to make it the proper preparation for 'learning the 
B and R. If practiced with the final stroke pointing downward 
(toward the left) the result will be that the minute loops of the 
B and R will also point downward, instead of upward toward 
the left. The main body ovals of all three capitals are wide both 
at the top and bottom turns and the long up strokes run parallel 
with the down strokes. The most common error in making these 
capitals is to make the up strokes slant more than the down 
strokes, and thus make the letters too narrow at the top, giving 
them a pinched effect. The spaces between the Controlling 
Strokes and the final down strokes in B and R are narrow. The 
minute loops stand across the Controlling Strokes, having the 
effect of being looped around them, and are placed at right angles 
to the slant of the letters. The B does not extend below the writing 
line as often made. It is profitable to give special study and 
practice to the Controlling Stroke, even separately, as very much 
depends upon this stroke in mastering the capitals of this and the 
preceding groups. The intense left curve at the top of the Con¬ 
trolling Stroke is of great importance. The common error of be¬ 
ginning the stroke straight or with a right curve should be care¬ 
fully avoided. Great care must also be exercised to place these 
letters on the same slant with all capitals. It is a common error 
to make them too nearly vertical. 

The Controlling Stroke of this group is used in an unmodified 
form in the S and L and in a modified form in the G. The slant 
of the long down stroke in S is slightly less than in L to provide 
for the extra broad turn at the bottom of the S, to give sufficient 
space between the initial up stroke and the stem and still preserve 
a proper slant for the letter as a whole. The modification in slant 
is below the top loop. The loop is the same in all three capitals 
(S, G, L). The bottoms of S and G are alike. The S and G are 
two of the four letters in the capital alphabet which commence 


z 









































80 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


with up strokes. The small loop at the bottom of the Controlling 
Stroke in L is like the corresponding loop in Q and D, and like 
these is placed flat on the writing line. That the S, G and L 
belong, logically, to the same group cannot admit of doubt, and 
that the L belongs at the final end of the trio will become more 
and more evident with study and practice. One of the most com¬ 
mon errors made in the letters of this group is to make too little 



curve in the Controlling Stroke in the S, and slant it too much. 
The same trouble is more or less present in making the L, and in 
the L, also, the practice of turning the lower loop upward at the 
left end is common. In the G a very common error is to make 
the top loop too short and make the loop and the top angle in the 
second part too nearly the same height. A good test of these let¬ 
ters is to transform the S into the G, and the G into S by adding 
the necessary strokes. The L may thus be transformed into a 
Q and into a D. The swing in the stroke at the finishing of S and 
G is one that should add freedom and strength to the movement. 
It is a common error to give too little curve to the initial up 
strokes of the S and G. 

The Controlling Strokes for this group are considered one be¬ 
cause of their great similarity. Both forms commence with up 
strokes, and the I and J of this group are the other two capitals 
that commence with up strokes, as previously mentioned. (The 
four capitals that commence with up strokes are S, G, I, J.) The 
J is the only capital that commences below the writing line. This 
is necessary to permit making the crossing of the lower loop at 


8 





























































THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


81 


the line, uniformly with all lower loops, and it adds to the har¬ 
monious proportions of the letter to make both crossings at the 
same point. In the I the down stroke of the Controlling Stroke 
is curved throughout—slightly until the crossing is reached and 
intensely below the crossing. In the J the down stroke of the 
Controlling Stroke, and also for the completed J, is straight, 
except for the slight curves near the extremities, required for 


making the turns. In the I, as for the J, the two crossings are at 
the same point. In these two capitals very great care is required 
to preserve the correct slant. It is a very common error to make 
the I and the top of the J vertical or slant toward the left, instead 
of making them slant toward the right uniformly with all other 
capitals. This difficulty in slant is to be corrected by giving at¬ 
tention to the up strokes rather than to the down strokes. 



Since numerals nearly always designate values it is of the highest importance that they be perfectly legible. The details of 
form should be carefully studied. The arrow by the S indicates the direction in which the stroke commences. 

* 

The 4 and 6 will look the best extended higher than the rest; 

And it improves the 7 and 9 if they extend below the line; 

But all the rest are only right when written at an even height. 



















































' 








































































































































































































✓ 




























n 













PART IV 

PENMANSHIP FOR THE GRADES 

This section presents all the lessons contained in the seven grade books of the 
Hausam System in regular order by books, giving each copy together with ex¬ 
planations for teaching the same. 

Teachers are expected to familiarize themselves with the subject matter cov¬ 
ered in Parts I, II and III of this text and use the same in connection with the 
grade lessons. The details given under the headings of Position, Movement, 
Materials, Arranging the Work on the Page and Grading Pupils’ Specimens 
must be taken into account in connection with every lesson. 







THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


PENMANSHIP IN THE GRADES 

This Part is devoted to teaching penmanship in the grades. 
The author’s aim in preparing this department has been to 
make it meet every need of the grade teacher in handling pen¬ 
manship classes. To this end illustrations of page work require¬ 
ments have been inserted and full discussions of arranging the 
work on the page, materials and schedules have been presented 
as general instruction for all grade teachers. These general dis¬ 
cussions are followed by complete presentations of the individual 
grade writing books with specific instructions for teaching each 
lesson. 

Teachers in all grades should acquaint themselves thoroughly 
with the ideas presented in the general discussions before making 
a special study of the subject matter for their individual grades. 
There is a vital current of the subject running throughout all the 
grades and into the high school and college fields that must be 
considered at every step. By making a study of the subject in its 
complete presentation the teacher will be enabled to understand 
what is essential in any particular grade to make it a harmonious 
part of the whole. The conscientious teacher will not be satisfied 
to sift out a few ideas that will be narrowly helpful in a par¬ 
ticular situation, but will aim to acquire a general understanding 
of the full scope of the subject as presented in the several depart¬ 
ments of this text. 

Teachers who do not already possess considerable skill in the 
execution of good script forms should at least practice the copies 
of the lessons they are required to present to their pupils, since 
.no amount of abstract study can bring such a familiarity with de¬ 
tails as can be gained by careful practice, and also because every 
teacher should be able to give pupils the inspiration that comes 
with seeing the skill they are endeavoring to acquire demon¬ 
strated. It is no less important that the teacher be able to show 


pupils how to write than how to solve a problem in arithmetic or 
how to construct a correct English sentence. 

ARRANGING THE WORK ON THE PAGE 

Among the important factors in learning to write well are the 
sense of order, neatness, arrangement and form, and unless these 
are made conspicuous in the writing lesson it cannot be said to be 
well planned or well carried out. Scribbling, carelessness, dis¬ 
order, and lack of neatness should never be countenanced in any 
degree, and every student should be required to submit a final 
test specimen of each lesson in which there is perfect evidence 
that the lesson has been carefully thought out and painstakingly 
worked out. These final test specimens of the successive lessons 
should be uniform in arrangement and should give definite in¬ 
formation covering the time, grade and the place they were written 
and also the name of the writer. All this should be provided for 
in the heading, which should be placed on the top line as shown 
in the illustrations on the accompanying pages. 

The lessons in Books I, II and III should all be arranged on 
the page in the same form as shown in the illustration on another 
page. In Grade I the teacher may find it advisable to have the 
pupils simplify the heading by omitting everything except the 
grade, date and first name, but in Grades II and III the full 
heading should be written. 

In Books IV, V, VI and VII the mere movement drills (which 
include the first five lessons in Books IV and V, the first six 
lessons in Book VI and the first five and the seventh lessons in 
Book VII) should be arranged on the page as previously illus¬ 
trated, except the large (three space) drills in Book VII, which 
should be arranged three lines of work, instead of four, on the 
page. All lessons following the mere movement drills in Books 
IV, V, VI and VII should be arranged on the page as shown in 
the illustration. 

In town and city schools the name of the town or city should 
be written in the heading instead of the district. The name of the 


86 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



' ( LEAVE TH/S E/RST LINE BLANK ) 

O 0 (3- 3 cxraJy cruA / 2 3 U S 
OOOC 3 txmO m3 12 3 46 

(0033 cmrnJA cnO 123 U 6 

0 0 3 3 mm3A (m3 / 2 3 U 6 
0 0 3' 3 cma3 cnO 12 3 U 6 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


87 



/ J2, 4 / C. / 9-v^yi/ 












































88 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


89 


state may be omitted. Eaeb pupil is to write his or her own name, 
grade and book and the actual date in the heading. High school 
and college students should follow the same directions for ar¬ 
ranging the work on the page as given for Books IY, V, VI and 
VII, except that they should write the name of the school instead 
of the city or town, and should make only two lines of the four 
space mere movement drills on the page. 

In all specimens the first line under the heading should be left 
blank. This adds to the good appearance of the page and re¬ 
serves a convenient place in which the teacher may write criti¬ 
cisms or copies, if the page must be re-written. 

The forms of letters used in the heading should be of the styles 
used in the course in every instance and the heading should be 
considered as part of the lesson in determining the grade. In 
grades or schools above Grade III, where the arm movement is 
to be taught, due allowance must be made for writing the headings 
before the arm movement has been sufficiently developed to make 
it available in writing the heading. It can be insisted upon that 
the forms be good though drawn with the finger movement. By 
the time several mere movement drills have received passing 
grades the movement will have been sufficiently developed to 
warrant requiring its use in writing the heading. 

In working out a lesson the pupil or student should be required 
to make the full page as often as may be necessary to enable him 
to write it without hesitation and embody in it all the elements of 
meritorious work. The heading should be arranged, spaced and 
punctuated correctly and should employ the correct letter forms, 
with due consideration to pleasing proportions. The lesson work 
should be placed on the lines with proper regard to margins and 
spacings. The lines throughout should be of fine quality. The 
paper should be kept clean and neatness should be insisted upon. 
In all movement work the necessary speed should be required. 

Each practice page prepared by the pupil or student should be 
criticised by the teacher in respect to its principal general defects 
and one or two of the more conspicuous errors of details before it 
is undertaken again. The general criticisms should cover such 
matters as line quality, neatness, general arrangement, spacing, 
speed, uniformity or movement and the details of the more out¬ 


standing errors in form. These criticisms should be explained to 
the student orally or written on his specimen in such a way as to 
give him a very clear and definite understanding as to exactly 
what improvement he should now undertake to make. He should 
be made to understand clearly that the purpose of practice is to 
aim constantly to overcome some specific error and attain some 
specific standard of excellence. 

After the pupil or student has prepared a sufficient number of 
full page specimens to insure his having accomplished the purpose 
of the lesson quite thoroughly, he should be directed to prepare a 
final test specimen upon which he should be given his grade for 
the lesson. This final test specimen should be preserved by the 
teacher or pupil, and the grade placed on it should be considered 
as a partial grade which is to be used as a factor in determining 
the complete grade at the close of the grading period. 

WRITING MATERIALS 

Much time and effort expended by teachers and pupils on pen¬ 
manship is wasted because of the poor quality of materials used. 
The materials should be of such a grade that they will serve 
adequately the purpose of expressing the most perfect concepts of 
form and the finest degree of touch the student has developed, 
and will serve as a spur to still higher development in these re¬ 
spects. It is obvious to everyone that no progress could be made 
in this subject by using a pointed stick instead of a pen, or gummy 
paint instead of ink. But very few appreciate the great im¬ 
portance of choosing the exact grade of materials required to se¬ 
cure the best results. If a pointed stick is inadequate, is a stub 
pen all right? If not, is a coarse, stiff pen with a point satisfac¬ 
tory? If not, what degree of fineness is desirable? Also, should a 
pen be rigid or flexible? If flexible, to what extent? Is there any 
rule by which these factors may be determined? 

In selecting the proper kind of pen to be used is it necessary to 
understand what is to be accomplished in using the pen. Is the 
purpose of using the pen to create a product or to promote train¬ 
ing? That is, should the aim in the schoolroom be the same as in 
the business office? Sound pedagogy certainly differentiates 
sharply between the two. If this were not true why do we not 



90 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


equip the schoolroom with computing machines for working prob¬ 
lems in arithmetic? The answer is, that the office is concerned 
only with the product, whereas the schoolroom is concerned with 
the process or with the training. The answer then to the question 
as to what kind of pen is best for penmanship practice is the pen 
that will serve best as an instrument for the truest kind of train¬ 
ing. This gives rise to another question: What is the truest kind 
of training and what does it involve? 

True training in writing involves building correct concepts of 
letter forms and reducing those forms to paper or some cor¬ 
responding material. In this dual process are involved several 
factors which must be considered in selecting a pen that will best 
serve the purpose. The concept must be perfected to the highest 
possible degree because the concept determines the demand upon 
the nervous system. This demand placed upon the nervous system 
by the concept determines the nature of the reaction in the nervous 
system. The concept, in other words, seeks expression through the 
nervous system. The more perfect the concept the more exacting 
will be its demands upon the nervous system through which it 
seeks to express itself. It follows that the finer the quality of the 
concept the nervous system undertakes to express, the finer must 
be the instrument through which this expression becomes possi¬ 
ble. It is on this account that all artists despair of finding in¬ 
struments of expression. The artist in music finds no instrument 
adequate to perfectly express his concepts; nor does the color 
artist find adequate colors; nor does the expert penman find 
adequate pen or ink. 

This problem of expression finds its solution in penmanship 
almost solely on the basis of what is known as “touch.” Touch 
may be said to be the condition of skill in penmanship. One 
cannot execute better than his touch. His writing nerves and 
muscles may always be said to have attained a rank in the field 
of training that is on a level with his touch. Since touch is thus 
the true index to the degree of skill attained, it follows that the 
pen that contributes most to the development of touch is the best 
suited to the purpose. 

In selecting a pen with the aim of making it a means of de¬ 
veloping touch the following requirement is of first importance: 


The pen must he of such fineness and flexibility that it will 
tend to prick the paper on up strokes and spread (making heavy 
lines) on the down strokes when not held correctly. This rule 
must be considered flexible enough to make it serve in selecting 
a pen that is adaptable to students of different grades and, in 
some instances, individual requirements. In every case the one 
purpose, training, must be kept in vieAV. A pen that requires 
more skill than the student possesses to handle it successfully 
should be selected in every case but the requirement should not 
be so far beyond his skill as to defeat the very object aimed at. 
Of this the teacher or someone who is more competent to decide 
than is the student must be the judge. The natural inclination of 
the student will be to select a pen that is easy to handle—one that 
requires no training to handle it. This is, of course, altogether 
incorrect pedagogically. For the same reason no fountain pen 
should ever be permitted to be used in penmanship practice. 

In the last half of the third year and in Grade IY, and for ex¬ 
tremely nervous pupils or pupils having physical handicaps, it is 
advisable to use a pen that is somewhat coarser and stiffer than 
should be used from the fifth grade up. But in all grades above 
the fourth comparatively fine and flexible pens should be used. 

In Grades I and II and in the first half of Grade III only lead 
pencils (supplemented by blackboard work) should be used for 
writing. These pencils should have a lead that will hold a point 
quite well but that will not cut into the paper too easily. The 
lead should be the size of an ordinary pencil but the wood staff 
should be larger. A medium quality of lead is best for most chil¬ 
dren. 

The ink should be black when first written. Fluids which turn 
black in the course of time are not as desirable for writing prac¬ 
tice as inks that write "black, although they may be preferable for 
office use. Colored inks should never be used. No ink will reg¬ 
ister the quality of touch th^t is due first consideration in all 
writing practice as satisfactorily as will a good quality of free- 
flowing black ink. 

The paper should be of good quality, white, and 5 y 2 xS y 2 inches 
in size. For Grades I, II and III the ruling should be about % of 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


&I 


an inch wide, and for all grades above the third about % of an 
inch. 

The materials recommended without qualification are listed 
below. 

WRITING MATERIALS 

The writing materials listed below should be carried in stock 
by all stationers who carry school supplies, but if they cannot be 
purchased locally they may be ordered from Eckdall & McCarty. 


Emporia, Kansas, at the prices given: 

Hausam’s Primary Writer No. 12 Pencils, 
for grades 1, 2 and 3— 

One pencil, postpaid .$0.10 

One dozen pencils, postpaid .60 

Hausam’s Intermediate No. 34 Pens, 
for grades 3 and 4— 

Per gross, postpaid . 1.00 

Hausam’s Advanced No. 5S Pens, 
for grades 5 to 8 and above— 

Per gross, postpaid . 1.00 

Eagle Cork Tip No. 173 Penholders, 

One penholder, postpaid .10 

One dozen, postpaid .60 

Banker’s Black Ink, 

One bottle, postpaid .15 

One dozen bottles, by express, charges to be paid by the 

purchaser .SO 

Practice Paper, 

Per dozen pads, postpaid.82 


(Both narrow and wide ruled may be included) 

THE SCHEDULE 

For the Distribution of the Lessons of the Several Grade 
Writing Books Throughout the Year. 

Each of the grade writing books contains sufficient material to 
cover a nine months’ term with a daily writing period of fifteen 
minutes. If the pupils put in more than fifteen minutes daily, 
either during school hours, or, as is done by many, outside of 


school hours at home, the standard may be placed higher, or the 
pupils may be permitted to advance ahead of the schedule for 
extraordinary work, as explained in the chapter entitled Grading 
Pupils' Specimens. If the daily program does not allow daily 
writing periods of fifteen minutes, or if the term is less than nine 
months the standard of excellence should nevertheless be main¬ 
tained on all the lessons covered and lessons not reached at the 
close of the term should be omitted. In Books I, II and III pupils 
should complete in a succeeding term any lessons not reached in a 
preceding term, but in Books IY, V, VI. and YII pupils should 
commence at the beginning of their books at the beginning of 
each term to give them the advantage of the mere movement 
drills. 

Six Weeks’ Grading Periods 

BOOK 1.4 lessons each six weeks for the first eighteen 

weeks, and 5 lessons each six weeks for the second 
eighteen weeks. 

BOOK II.4 lessons each six weeks through the nine months’ 

term. 

BOOK III....4 lessons each six weeks through the nine months’ 
term. 

BOOK IV.3 lessons each six weeks for the first twelve weeks, 

and 1 lesson each week for the remaining tw’enty- 
four weeks. 

BOOK V.The same as for Book IV. 

BOOK VI.The same as for Book IV. 

BOOK VII_The same as for Book IV. 

Four Weeks’ Grading Periods 

BOOK 1.3 lessons each four weeks. 

BOOK II.3 lessons each four weeks for thirty-two weeks, 

and review the last four weeks. 

BOOK III_The same as for Book II. 

BOOK IV.2 lessons each four weeks for the first twelve 

weeks, and 1 lesson each week for the remaining 
twenty-four weeks. 

BOOK V.The same as for Book IV. 

BOOK VI.The same as for Book IV. 

BOOK VII_The same as for Book IV. 






















92 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



STANDARDS FOR GRADING SPECIMENS OF WRITING 

IN GRADE I 

The five specimens of writing by first grade pupils which have 
been reproduced in the above engraving were taken from regular 
class work by these pupils. All were written with lead pencils. 


Number I was written by Katherine Marbourg, of Union school, 
Emporia, Kansas, Miss Elizabeth Johnson, principal of the school 
and teacher of the first grade. 

Number 5 is the poorest class of work that should be con¬ 
sidered of passing quality. Number 4 may even be made the 




























THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


93 


minimum requirement. Each number represents a range of 5% 
on the basis of 100%. Thus, number 1 should be graded 95%, or 
up to 100% ; number 2 90%, or up to 95% ; number 3 85%, or up 
to 90% ; number 4 80%, or up to S5%, and number 5 75%, or up 
to 80%. Below 75% should be considered not passing. 

If letters or numerals are used in grading, number 1 should be 
ranked 1 or A or E (Excellent) ; number 2, 2, B or G (Good) ; 
number 3, 3, C or M (Medium) ; number 4, 4, D or P (Poor). 
Number 5 may be ranked 5 or E (if the lowest rank for passing) 
or F (Failure), if not passing. 

Standards should be too high rather than too low and the 
average pupil will be found capable of attaining the standard of 4 
in the illustration almost as easily as 5, with proper instruction 
and criticism. Intelligent criticism is, doubtless, the most im¬ 
portant element in securing improvement in form-building. Pupils 
who are allowed to struggle along in the process of form-building 
without adequate help in the way of direction and criticism are 
almost certain to form concepts that are preponderantly faulty. 
These faulty concepts will often remain as permanent defects in 
the individual’s handwriting. The crude and inadequate and in 
many cases illegible script forms that have grafted themselves 
almost ineradicably upon the habits of the majority of adults are 
traceable to the formative period in early childhood or youth 
when the first efforts were undirected or misdirected. There is 
no more reason to expect good writing from the average present 
day teaching than there would be to expect correct English from 
illiterates. The illiterate composes his vocabulary, determines his 
pronunciation and constructs his sentences out of undirected or 
misdirected experience and in consequence acquires a language 
that lacks the marks of culture. The parallel in learning to write 
is indisputable. 

Proper analysis of the specimens on Plate I will show how slight 
a change would in each case bring the specimen up to the standard 
of the preceding number. In number 2 the two parts of the IPs 


must be placed closer together; the long down strokes in the h’s 
must be more nearly straight, and the final down strokes in the 
h’s must be parallel with the long down strokes. These criticisms 
made to the pupil while practicing would be easily embodied in 
the work with the result of bringing number 2 up to the standard 
of number 1. In number 3 the enlarging of the initial loops in the 
H’s, making the connecting loops between the two parts of the H’s 
inclined upward at the left ends, and making the long down 
strokes of the h’s on the same slant as the down strokes of the 
H’s, and the final down strokes of the h’s the same—all errors 
that the average child would be able to correct if they were spe¬ 
cifically pointed out, would bring number 3 up to standard of 2 
or 1. In number 4 the first and most serious error is in not 
making the letters stand properly on the ruled line. This cor¬ 
rection, which is easily made, would bring this number up to 
the standard of number 3. Enlarging the initial loops of the H’s, 
and making both parts of the H’s and the loops of the h’s of even 
height would bring this specimen to the place of 1 or 2. These 
corrections would be made by the average child if clearly pointed 
out and demonstrated. Number 5 illustrates a class of work that 
needs the most conscientious attention on the part of the teacher. 
The only safe procedure in such cases is to hold the child’s hand, 
while it holds the pencil properly, and demonstrate how the letter 
should be drawn throughout. The process must be repeated until 
the child grasps the concept clearly and shows some knack in 
actually forming the letter correctly. To tell this child, at this 
juncture, to make the letters better, or make them like they are 
in the book is sheer folly. Left to his own initiative for a year or 
two his fate will be practically sealed in the fold of scribblers. 
Teachers should appreciate this fundamental principle: The more 
often a pupil draws a letter imperfectly the more certain it be¬ 
comes that he will persist in doing so, and the more difficult it 
will be to correct the process. Also, the more often he repeats an 
approximately correct form the more perfectly will such a habit 
become established, until at last to write well will be habitual. 
No arm movement should be attempted in this grade. 



94 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 




STANDARDS FOR GRADING SPECIMENS OF WRITING 

IN GRADE II 

The five specimens of writing reproduced in the above Plate 
were taken from regular class work by pupils in this grade. All 


were written with lead pencils. Number one was written by 
Harold Irey, of Maynard school, Emporia, Kansas, Miss Ruth 
Scott, principal of the school and teacher of Grade II. 

Each of these specimens should rank the same as the corre- 

























THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


95 


sponding number in Plate I, representing first grade work, in the 
grading scale. It will be noted that even the lowest in the scale is 
work of a degree of merit and is perfectly legible. Mere scribbling 
should never be considered of any value. Teachers should never 
lose sight of the principle that they have not taught unless the 
pupils have learned. To permit pupils to fill lines and even pages 
with haphazard, indifferent scribbling, in vague imitation of the 
copy line, may usually be considered harmful, and it were better 
if such work were not done at all. The pupil should be brought 
to the point of actually exercising his fullest powers in the attempt 
to produce a perfect letter form. Once such an endeavor has been 
awakened, the desire will be quickened and improvement will be 
marked. 

As already often emphasized, intelligent constructive criticism 
is the first requisite in teaching this subject, and attention is 
directed to the following points as the most important in con¬ 
sidering the last four specimens in Plate II. 

In number 2 the loops in the h’s should be broader and of even 
height with each other and with the capitals. The slant of the 
capitals and of the small letters is not the same. The a oval does 
not slant enough and the parts of the m are not uniform. 

In number 3 the height of the capitals and of the loops in the h’s 
is not uniform ; the h’s, in particular, are very uneven. The long 
strokes in the h’s do not slant enough. The slant of the several 
down strokes in the word “ham” is not uniform. 

In number 4 the initial loops in the H’s are too large and are 
poorly formed; the connecting loops between the parts of the H’s 
are too large; the loops in the h’s are generally too wide and are 
uneven in height and width; there is a lack of uniformity in 
height, slant and spacing; the o slants too much and has an in¬ 
correct finish; some of the letters do not rest accurately on the 
line. 

In number 5 almost every detail requires consideration. Pupils 
who make their letters thus poorly should have special attention 
by being helped to draw with the utmost care each new letter 
undertaken. Each detail should be explained as the letter is 
being formed. Uniformity of height should be carefully explained; 


also uniformity of slant and spacing. The importance of making 
the proper part or parts of each letter rest on the line should be 
emphasized. The utmost effort should be made to build in the 
pupil’s mind the perfect picture of the letter. Writing like num¬ 
ber 5 should hardly be considered of passing quality. Practically 
every child in possession of its normal mental and physical en¬ 
dowments should be able to do better work than number 5, if 
properly taught. It must be understood, however, that no one 
can make better forms than exist in his mind, and that concept 
building is of the most fundamental importance. 

In the process of concept building, which is one of the two chief 
ends to be kept in view in the primary grades, it should be re¬ 
membered that quantity is of little consequence. The whole prob¬ 
lem turns upon what the pupil has learned that is vital to his fu¬ 
ture development. It cannot be said that anything the pupil learns 
in this subject, aside from the elements of correct position, correct 
concept building and the ability to reproduce these concepts ac¬ 
curately on paper, amounts to much in its bearing upon future 
progress. How much he does means little. How he does it (as 
long as correct position is maintained) amounts to little more. 
What he does is all important. The pupil must arrive at the 
point of making each letter form correctly, for the first time, 
before his progress can be said to be launched definitely upon the 
right road. An infinite repetition of wrong forms, and an infinite 
rehearsal of the complaint that “I can’t make it any better,” will 
never satisfy the requirements of true teaching, or supply the 
essentials of learning. 

The teacher’s efforts must result in the pupil’s acquiring a 
definite and clear-cut understanding of what he is to do and 
how he is to do it; that is, how he must sit; how he must place 
the paper; how he must hold the pencil; how he must proceed in 
producing each letter form, and almost above all, it may be said, 
how to think perfect letter forms. This is the function of teach¬ 
ing. The test is whether the pupil actually does what is being 
taught him, since no one can be said to have taught unless some 
one has learned. 

In Grade II no arm movement should be attempted. 



96 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



STANDARDS FOR GRADING SPECIMENS OF WRITING 

IN GRADE III 

The specimens presented in this Plate were engraved from writ¬ 


ing done by third grade pupils in regular class work. All were 
written with lead pencils. Number 1 was written by Ora Randall, 
Grantville, Kansas, Mrs. W. W. Detlor, teacher. 































THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


97 


The relative rank of each of the specimens should be considered 
the same as explained in connection with Plate I, first grade. 
Work that is poorer than the fifth specimen should not be con¬ 
sidered passing. 

As explained in connection with the preceding plates, intelligent 
constructive criticism applied at the right time will enable pupils 
who write like the 2d, 3d, 4th and 5tli specimens to improve enough 
in a very short time to take a higher rank. But if these pupils are 
permitted to continue repeating the errors first manifest in their 
work they will soon form habits that are hard to eradicate. 

In number 2 the most conspicuous error is that the capitals are 
too small, and, next, the l’s are too short and have their down 
strokes curved too much. Following these corrections, effort should 
he made to improve the finishings of the w’s by retracing, and 
to make the shoulder of the r higher. General uniformity should 
he watched carefully. 

In number 3 the most conspicuous error is the lack of uni¬ 
formity in the height of the minimum letters. The w’s, the e’s 
and the a should be of even height. Next, the capitals should be 
given attention as to details, especially to avoid making the loop 
at the bottom of the final part. It should be noted that all the 
down strokes in the w’s, e’s and l’s, the main down stroke in 
r and the final down stroke of a should be made as nearly straight 
as possible. All the letters should stand perfectly on the line. 

In number 4 the most conspicuous fault is the wide spacing be¬ 
tween the words. This child, and perhaps its teacher, meant to 
make the completed line the proper length, but did not give suf¬ 
ficient attention to the requirements of spacing between letters, 
in words, and between words, considered together. The W’s need 
study. The first and second parts should be of even height. There 
should be no retrace or loop in any of the joinings. The final 
stroke should have a more intense curve near the top. The l’s 
should be of even height with the capitals. All the down strokes 
in the small letters, except the first in the a and the top part 
of the r, should be made as nearly straight as possible. The 
spacing throughout should have special attention. 

In number 5 there is a decided showing of general carelessness. 
The W’s show a bad joining at the bottom of the, first parts; the 


second parts should be as high as the first. The omission of the 
final up strokes in the words indicates a degree of carelessness 
that is wholly incompatible with satisfactory progress in learning 
to write. A pupil who is so careless or unobserving as to make 
this mistake, or a teacher who is so indifferent as to permit it, 
cannot reasonably hope to give proper consideration to the many 
details that contribute to mastery of the subject, and must, con¬ 
sequently, face disappointment in teaching this subject. Lack of 
uniformity in height is another noticeable fault, and the spacing 
between words as well as between letters in words is very poor. 
Nothing less than the most painstaking instruction and criticism 
on the part of the teacher and the most unflagging care on the 
part of the pupil can remedy this style of writing and bring it up 
to a reasonable standard. 

The work of teaching and of accomplishing what should be 
taught and done in the first three grades in the way of form¬ 
building is of the highest importance. It is in these grades that 
correct concepts must be established since the universality of 
poor writing may be assigned to failure in the teaching in these 
grades more than to any one other cause. What the adult de¬ 
clares to be his “natural style” of writing, poor or very poor, is 
nothing more than his habitual style, the foundation of which was 
laid in his primary or elementary schooling. Had he been prop¬ 
erly taught in this subject in the form-building grades, and then 
properly trained through the arm movement grades, he would 
have acquired an altogether different and much superior “natural 
style” of writing. To speak of one’s “natural style” of writing is 
exactly parallel to speaking of one’s “natural style” of English, 
or enunciation, or pronunciation. All are the result of practice, 
good, bad or indifferent, and all are natural only as all habits are 
natural — so called, second nature. 

It should never be lost sight of that the first requisite of writing 
is legibility. Legibility is nothing more or less than good letter 
forms. Good letter forms are founded in mental images. These 
images must be accurate, definite, clean cut, not vague or indis¬ 
tinct. In Grades I, II and III the fingers must be trained to 
trace these perfect images accurately and this will mean the 
laying of the correct foundation in this subject. 



98 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



STANDARDS FOR GRADING SPECIMENS OF WRITING 

IN GRADE IV 

The five specimens presented in this plate were taken from 
pages written by pupils in the fourth grade, and number 1 was 
written by Courtney Lucas, of Lincoln school, Emporia, Kansas, 
Miss Mary Herbert, teacher. 

In this grade the arm movement is commenced and work must 
he judged from the two-fold standpoint of movement and form. As 
the arm movement is now merely taking its inception it must be 
considered elementary and not emphasized in the pupil’s mind 
to such an extent or in such a way as to minimize or depreciate 
form. The pupil should understand clearly that the arm move¬ 
ment is merely a device to make ivriting easier, and is not an end 
in itself. It is certainly sound pedagogy that letter forms, as such, 
must be held in abeyance more or less, during the mere movement 
practice, but there is much that concerns form in the mere move¬ 


ment drills that must have constant attention. Line quality, also, 
must now he given additional attention. It will be found that 
almost any average class will have one or more pupils of ex¬ 
ceptional capabilities in the way of motor control and concept of 
form. Such pupils will make extraordinary progress in arm move¬ 
ment development. However, the percentage of pupils in Grade 
IV who will use the arm movement with readiness and ease will 
be low and most of the pupils must be considered as doing quite 
satisfactory work if there is a clearly noticeable element of arm 
movement active in their general written work. In regular pen¬ 
manship practice the pure arm movement should be insisted upon 
as fully as possible. 

The successive specimens in the Plate show a gradual decline 
from the standard set in number 1 in three respects: arm move¬ 
ment, form and line quality. The elements coming under the gen¬ 
eral head of form are uniformity in height, spacing and slant. 













THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


99 


Number 2 does not show the freedom in movement seen in num¬ 
ber 1 and the small letters are lacking in smoothness and uni¬ 
formity. The line quality in numbers 3, 4 and 5 gradually becomes 
coarser, and the lack of uniformity in the elements of form be¬ 
comes more and more conspicuous with each advancing number. 

From these suggestions it will be seen that with number 2 the 
arm movement should be particularly emphasized as the form is 
of a higher quality than the movement. Increased speed will be 
helpful in this case. In number 3 the movement is of about the 
same quality as in number 2 but the form is poorer. It is thus 
necessary to emphasize movement as much as in number 2 and 
form more. Attention must also be called to the line quality, 
which is a little inclined toward coarseness. In number 4 the 
movement shows a very noticeable decline and the line quality is 
much poorer, while the form is defective, especially in uniformity 
of height. The oval work is also quite irregular. It will be seen, 
therefore, that pupils doing this grade of work have much to de¬ 
mand special attention—more freedom and speed in the arm 
movement, finer line quality and better forms. In number 5 the 
coarseness and stiffness are at the lowest plane that can be con¬ 
sidered as passing work, and may even be considered failing work. 
The movement is lacking in lightness even in the ovals. The 
finger movement is almost dominant in the letter work. Pupils 
doing this grade of work should be drilled for freedom, speed and 
smoothness in the arm movement, mostly through the medium 


of mere movement drills. Attention should be directed to light¬ 
ness of touch and uniformity of height, slant and spacing of let¬ 
ters. 

The teacher should have a very definite understanding of the 
errors that must be corrected to bring the writing to a higher 
standard, and must explain the requirements plainly to the pupil 
in order that he may have a definite aim in his efforts. Indefinite¬ 
ness results in vagueness of thought and feebleness of effort, 
from which little or no gain can be derived. If the lines are too 
heavy the pupil must understand that he is gripping the pen¬ 
holder too much. If the lines are shaky the movement is too 
slow. If the letters do not slant like the oblique straight line 
drill it is likely that there is considerable finger movement being 
used. In Plate IV the slant of the capitals compared with the 
oval work shows that the fingers helped in the capitals, they 
being more nearly vertical than the oval drill. One of the laws 
of movement is that slant approaches the vertical in the ratio 
of the introduction of finger movement. Understanding this law 
will enable one to detect the action of the fingers in numbers 2, 3 
and 4. Number 5 has the error of tipping the ovals somewhat 
toward the left, which is quite common with beginners. This is 
because of the tension in the muscles inside the elbow (biceps), 
which tends to draw the hand toward the left (right-handed per¬ 
sons j. Perfect relaxation will correct this trouble. 



100 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


i ry 


.( V / L 


O—ZL 


/ L tf-t-O'/C-'' //( /XU^/ 


O : 


A"? Syi ■{) p , 

/ 1 / 'p'V'f l 


Si , 


■40 


44# 


#/? . // 
Liyt- 

^ a 

/VX OO- 1 -O Kw 


■ ■ ■ • - • »• ' 


? ^Mr>n 


n 


( Ll c y ■ * 



STANDARDS FOR GRADING SPECIMENS OF WRITING 

IN GRADE V 

These five specimens were written by pupils in Grade V and 
number 1 was written by Margaret Walker, of Union school, Em¬ 
poria, Kansas, Miss Laura Wells, teacher. An examination of the 
several specimens will show that the errors which are responsible 
for the rank in which they are placed are as follows : In number 2 
the chief error is in spacing. The spaces between words and be¬ 
tween words and capitals are too wide. The error that stands 
second in seriousness is irregularity in slant. It will be seen 
that the capitals slant more than the small letters. This is be¬ 
cause the fingers were permitted to become slightly active in 
writing the small letters, while the pure arm movement was used 
in writing the capitals. This is according to the physiological law 
that slant diminishes in the ratio of the introduction of finger 
movement. These two errors are not difficult to correct and prac¬ 


tically all pupils who write like number 2 will be able to attain 
the standard of number 1 within a very short time under the 
proper kind of instruction and criticism. 

In number 3 the most serious error is the lack of speed in the 
movement which may be detected in the shaky lines. The error 
that ranks second in seriousness is the slant of the l’s, together 
with the fact that the down strokes in these letters are not 
straight. If the l’s in number 3 were set more nearly upright to 
make the slant uniform with the other letters and if their down 
strokes were straight, and if the movement had been rapid enough 
to produce smooth lines, this specimen would easily have been of 
the standard required for number 2, and from this it would not 
be difficult to bring it up to the standard of number 1. But the 
pupil may go on making the same errors until they become so 
fixed that it may seem almost impossible to eradicate them if 
he is not guided by proper instruction and aided by intelligent 
criticism. 









THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


101 


In number 4 the action of the fingers becomes very noticeable 
in that the letters, especially the small letters, so nearly approach 
the vertical. The mingling of the finger and the arm movement is 
responsible for the variation of slant. The arm movement tends to 
make all letters on the slant of the oblique straight line drill, 
and the finger movement tends to make all letters in the vertical 
position. It is obvious that it would be necessary to combine the 
two movements with the utmost regularity to maintain a uniform 
slant and this is so difficult to do as to make it quite impractica¬ 
ble. The common error is to use the arm movement in making the 
capitals and the finger movement, at least in considerable part, 
to execute the small letters, and the result is a greater slant for 
the capitals than for the small letters. In number 4 the move¬ 
ment should have special attention. Spaces between words should 
be shortened and spaces between connected letters should be 
lengthened slightly. It should not be difficult to bring this kind 
of work to the standard of 3 or even 2. 

In number 5 the touch is seriously undeveloped. This pupil 
must learn to relax the writing muscles and must learn to hold 
the pen so lightly that it will all but fall from the fingers. This 
manner of holding the pen and relaxing the muscles will produce 
fine lines and will enable the arm movement to act with proper 
freedom and smoothness. Next to line quality (fundamentally, re¬ 
laxation) the most serious error is in form. The initial strokes 
in the N’s and M’s must be alike, and the other parts of the let¬ 
ters need careful study. The down strokes in all the small letters 


except in the o’s and ovals of d and g are straight. The final 
strokes at the ends of the first three words are incorrect. This 
is very noticeable in the e. In such work as this the criticism 
should include marking one complete line, perhaps a word at a 
time, to show all the details to be corrected. The second part 
of the second N should be rounded properly; the two o’s should 
be slanted correctly; the long doAvn stroke in d should be made 
straight; the 1 should be made higher and narrower and the down 
stroke should be made straight, and the down stroke of the e 
should be made straight and the correct form of right curve should 
be put on for the final stroke. In this manner every detail should 
be pictured to the pupil. Much serious work on the part of both 
teacher and pupil is required to bring this work up to a satis¬ 
factory standard. No work that is poorer than number 5 should 
be given a passing grade, and even this type of work may well be 
rejected. 

Nothing can take the place of intelligent criticism. No pupil 
should be permitted to find the correct form by the process com¬ 
monly called “trial and error.” The tendency to form habits is 
so strong that with this practice practically every child will be¬ 
come possessed of incorrect writing habits and accustomed to in¬ 
correct letter forms before he gets the first mental glimpse of 
the correct form. After that the struggle to actually learn correct 
forms (in the practical sense) is incomparably greater than it 
would have been had the pupil been properly trained from the 
outset. 



102 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


i (y 


'yi-'LC 


b.( cu^y fi7T/~~-~.+ . _ 71 ■ 


t 'l rr>7. 


yv i f >.<a ^ z / , (A yCy ' ■ "V 


b '(3. C?. 7^n-ut,y6- 
0 . C . Yt, 


(J^fynA, 



. c 




, £A-^W /•?✓, CLc^V 

, (j^t^yiyf. 


Cr c. £y\n^AiA^i<A?L&7 (3, 


STANDARDS FOR GRADING SPECIMENS OF WRITING 

IN GRADE VI 

These five specimens of writing were written by pupils in Grade 
VI. Specimen number 1 was written by Eunice Piper, of Maynard 
school, Emporia, Kansas, Miss Vina Hillerman, teacher. As the 
pupils advance through the movement grades more stress should 
be placed on movement, but the forms of letters should not be 
slighted. It must be remembered that the sole office of the 
arm movement is to make writing easy. If it seems to do this, 
but at too great a sacrifice of legibility, it is of little, if any, 
merit. All writing is presumed to be written to be read and when 
it generates doubts in the mind of the reader its usefulness be¬ 
comes questionable. Such consideration should make the teacher 


emphasize form in all written work throughout the day. No 
written work should be considered good enough in any subject, 
unless it is perfectly legible. 

But it must be remembered that facility in doing is a factor of 
ever growing importance in all departments of life. Those who 
succeed must not only be able to do things well but must be able 
to do them with facility; that is, with ease and with considerable 
rapidity. To enable one to fulfill this requirement it is necessary 
that the arm movement in writing be mastered. Good form makes 
writing legible; but only the arm movement can make it easily 
and rapidly executed. The teacher must keep these two factors 
always in mind in the arm movement grades. 

Common sense should furnish sufficient understanding to enable 











THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


103 


the teacher to see that no matter how well grounded the pupil 
may be in form concepts and in drawing these concepts, the first 
stages of the arm movement development will more or less de¬ 
moralize the forms as they appear on the paper. This should not 
discourage the teacher, and he should be able to explain to the 
pupil that out of the chaos will come order in due time if the 
right kind of work is persisted in, and the final accomplishment 
will afford great pleasure as well as other advantages. 

Pupils who scrawl their writing badly with the arm movement 
will usually be found to be deficient in concepts of form and much 
may be gained by having these pupils draw the letters repeatedly 
and with great care before attempting them with the arm move¬ 
ment. However well it may be developed, the arm movement can¬ 
not make what is not clearly outlined in the mind. This makes 
it of first importance to see that pupils in the arm movement 
grades are given in the most perfect manner possible whatever 
instruction they may need in form. 

Teachers must understand that while it requires almost un¬ 
limited practice on the mere movement drills to establish the arm 
movement habit and give the movement the necessary smoothness 
and regularity to make it adequate to the needs of writing, it 
takes still more and a finer grade of practice to train the move¬ 
ment to execute good writing rapidly. One of the most inexcus¬ 


able practices in school writing is to permit pupils to scribble, and 
another hardly less condemnable is to permit them to pass from 
lesson to lesson without due practice. 

Each lesson, especially those on letter forms, should be consid¬ 
ered a definite problem to be learned thoroughly and the process 
of learning the lesson should usually involve three phases, as 
follows: 1. The pupils should trace the letters with dry pens, 
noting each detail of each letter. 2. After having traced the letters 
with dry pens (repeatedly if necessary), they should draw the 
forms with pen and ink in the most perfect imitation of the copy 
possible. These two phases will enable them to form the correct 
outlines in the mind. 3. They should practice the lesson over and 
over with a rapid, free, smooth arm movement until it can be 
written rapidly and with a satisfactory degree of accuracy. 

The schedules (presented elsewhere in this text) are arranged 
to give time to practice each lesson many times and to review it, 
and it should be noted that since learning to write well is a matter 
of forming correct habits, nothing but repetition can bring the 
desired results. Pupils who find some letters or parts of letters 
in a lesson more difficult to learn than the rest should give extra 
time and effort to such parts. The troublesome part or parts 
should be studied and drawn, and then practiced rapidly until they 
become as easy as the rest of the lesson. 



104 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


m 





■ . : ■■ Jf 

,y / 


/ [/ / p 

I'P-Z-'L 1^7. ^ZJ-L 


,-£ J? „ 


' ^'W^'iXyL V'yi.'tys^L ;%y{ri^7A 


x <_./ 


/ja^i^L/L^yzS' 


' ' ' '■■' / 

' - / 

--c'■/'<—.xc 

. x^ __ . 


: yAzjL~s> 


D^- 'L--x^^x ~-1>yC'/'C-'l- 


<LM- x^x ; 


7 



STANDARDS FOR GRADING SPECIMENS OF WRITING 

IN GRADE VII 

These five specimens of writing were written by pupils in Grade 
VII. Number 1 was written by Philip Hill of Century school, 
Emporia, Kansas, Miss Effa Maliar, teacher. It should be kept 
clearly in mind that good forms make writing legible, and good 
mom,ement makes writing easy. In this group of specimens the 
difference in legibility of numbers 1 and 2 is negligible. This is 
because both are of sufficiently good form to make the letters 
perfectly legible. But there is a very noticeable difference in the 
purity, freedom and smoothness of the arm movement as re¬ 
flected in the two specimens. In number 2 there is a marked in¬ 
clination to revert to the finger movement. The fingers were 
active in the capital B. In the more difficult strokes, as in the s’s, 
between the w and r and the loop in the g, it may be seen that 
the arm movement is so uncertain as to tempt the fingers to come 


to its assistance. The slant throughout the second specimen 
would have been greater had a purer arm movement been used. 

In number 3 the lack of uniformity in spacing and in height is 
the most serious error. The first six letters are better than most of 
the remaining letters, which shows a tendency to relax attention as 
the line progresses. The final s’s are too small; the w is too wide; 
the i’s in writing are too small; the t is open too high between the 
two strokes; the loop in g is too wide and crosses too low; the 
initial stroke of s in should is not curved enough; the h loop is 
too narrow; the second part of the h is too small; the second part 
of the u is too short and neither of the two down strokes in the 
i or that in the 1 are straight as they should be, and the 1 is too 
wide. The loop in the d is too small. The lower part of the b 
is too wide. The oval of the p is not rounded smoothly; the 1 is 
too short and the final n is wrong in the second part. These errors 
must be seen by the pupil before he will be able to correct them. 







THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


105 


He will likely never see them until much mischief has been done, 
unless he is helped by intelligent criticism on the part of the 
teacher. 

In number 4 is seen the very common trouble of writing with 
great irregularity in height. This is due to lack of motor control. 
Pupils having this difficulty to overcome should be drilled with 
the greatest care and with great persistence on mere movement 
drills until great regularity lias been developed. The arm move¬ 
ment seems to have been used quite definitely in number 4 but 
the movement is spasmodic or jerky. Nothing but rhythmic drill 
can be depended upon to remedy this trouble. It is nothing less 
than awkwardness, or lack of smoothness in motor activity. This 
trouble is frequently periodic in the pupil's development and, 
though very noticeable during one term, may have largely or 
wholly disappeared by the following term. 

Number 5 is the poorest style of writing that should be consid¬ 
ered passing in the seventh grade and under favorable circum¬ 
stances all normal pupils may at least be required to produce 
better line quality, if not better forms, and use a better movement 
than are shown in this specimen. This class of pupils must learn 
to relax the writing muscles and hold the pen more lightly. The 


writing shows a tendency to rigidity or stiffness and the remedy 
is relaxation. Drill on mere movement work will be helpful. 

It should be understood that all work in writing to be deserv¬ 
ing of a passing grade should be perfectly legible at least, and in 
addition should be written with as much ease as it has been pos¬ 
sible to develop under the circumstances and in the time allotted. 
Legibility is the first requisite for without legibility writing is not 
writing, and with legibility the product will serve its purpose. That 
it may have been laboriously written is a misfortune but is not a 
disaster, as illegibility often proves to be. 

Very much can be done to promote good writing by requiring 
all written work to be well done. It should be insisted upon that 
in all writing the lines be made light and the letter forms accord¬ 
ing to the adopted standard. If these two essentials are adhered 
to, the basic elements of the subject will not only not suffer but 
will show constant improvement, and any gain in arm movement 
development will enable the student to employ it with real ad¬ 
vantage. A perfect arm movement cannot make good letters if 
they are not clearly defined in the mind, and there can be no 
perfect arm movement without the ability to produce light lines, 
because this ability rests in relaxation of the writing muscles. 



106 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



STANDARDS FOR GRADING SPECIMENS OF WRITING 

IN GRADE VIII 

These five specimens were taken from the class work of eighth 
grade pupils. Number 1 was written by Mildred Dole in the Burr- 
ton, Kansas, school, Miss Mary Browning, teacher. The standard 
in this grade should be higher than in Grade VII in the develop¬ 
ment of the arm movement rather than in letter form, although 
there also should be a more strict responsibility in respect to form 
placed upon the pupil than is possible in preceding grades. Since 
the development of the arm movement is measured by the develop¬ 
ment of the motor centers in the brain and of the motor nerves it 
follows that the possibilities of the arm movement will increase 
with the maturing of these organs. Expert skill in penmanship, 
as in instrumental music, dancing and gymnastics, can come only 
with maturity. In the pre-adolescent period (Grades IV and V) 
the practicability of the arm movement first begins to become 
apparent, but its possibilities do not become very fully manifest 
until later years. In Grade VIII many pupils will be found to 


have reached the period of development when the wonderful pos¬ 
sibilities of the arm movement seem to come within reach. In 
this grade practically all pupils will be found capable of writing 
wholly with the arm movement and doing the work with a high 
degree of accuracy. The specimens presented in this Plate all 
show good arm movement and the varying degrees of control of 
the movement mark the different standards. The different de¬ 
grees of accuracy in form shown, may be due to either of two 
things: 1. The pupils may not have clear-cut concepts of the 
forms, which is likely to be the most general cause of errors. 
2. The more or less tardy or sluggish development of the motor 
systems may account for the irregularities in height and spacing. 

At this stage a very common obstacle to progress is carelessness. 
In the primary grades the imitative faculty is largely dominant, 
with individuality an almost negligible quantity; but by the time 
the pupil reaches the eighth grade his individuality will be in the 
ascendency and if he should be drifting into habits of carelessness 
or indifference these characteristics will be plainly revealed in his 





THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


107 


writing. Perhaps no one feature will seem so evident in the de¬ 
scending scale of the Plate as increasing lack of pains or care, 
and much of the criticism must be directed against the growth of 
this habit. 

It will be seen that the line quality shows a gradual degenera¬ 
tion from line to line down the Plate. This, as frequently men¬ 
tioned, is due to gripping the penholder and can be remedied only 
by relaxing the writing muscles. Many boys and girls, especially 
those living on farms, are required to grip whatever articles or 
instruments they handle because considerable muscular tension 
and effort are required to manipulate them. These practices carry 
over into their efforts with the pen and much patience and per¬ 
sistence must be exercised to effect the cure. 

All normal pupils in the eighth grade should learn to write 
with the arm movement, and it should be a fixed requirement 
that all writing done by them should be done with this movement 
and should be clearly legible. That this should seem to be a 
standard too high or even impossible of attainment is due to the 
poor preparation teachers, generally, possess for teaching the sub¬ 
ject correctly. 

Teachers of eighth grade pupils will find that their pupils have 
frequently not had the necessary training in form building in 


preceding grades that is necessary to permit of their devoting 
most of their time to movement training. In such cases both form 
and movement must be taught with equal stress. That this can be 
accomplished has been proved times without number, but very 
strict attention on the part of both teacher and pupils is required. 
Pupils in this grade will have their concepts quite fixed and these, 
if bad, will be hard to root but. But the requirements should be 
rigid. Incorrect letter forms should be warned against as se¬ 
verely as incorrect sentence structure or incorrect spelling. 

To make a success of writing, wrong writing must not be per¬ 
mitted. In all written work the careful and successful teacher 
will, of course, mark all words that are incorrectly spelled; direct 
attention to all improperly constructed sentences; check all mis¬ 
takes in arithmetical equations and note every error in drawn 
figures and outlines. The same principle of pedagogy must be 
applied to writing to bring it up to the standard of other sub¬ 
jects. Pupils should be required to make all letters according to 
the adopted standards and failure to do so should be penalized by 
the reduction of grades. The aim is to learn, which implies teach¬ 
ing. If the pupil has not learned the teacher has, of course, not 
taught. 



108 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


Instructions for Presenting 
HAUSAM’S PRACTICAL WRITING COURSE 
In the Grades 

In this Part of this volume are presented all the copies as they 
appear in the grade books of Hausam’s Practical Writing Course 
in the order in which they appear in the several books. In con¬ 
nection with the copies are given detailed instructions for pre¬ 
senting the lessons to classes. It is presumed that the teacher can 
afford to take the time necessary to read the instructions carefully, 
because writing has not, except in isolated instances, had its fair 
share of attention by teachers hitherto. It should not he too 
much to expect teachers to devote sufficient time and effort to 
learning to write and to teaching writing properly now that the 
subject is universally commanding renewed attention and consid¬ 
ering that it has been so long and so unexcusably neglected. This 
is especially true since it is a required branch and occupies a 
place in the laws of the several states on a par with all the com¬ 
mon school subjects. 

Let every teacher clarify his mind on all details. Vagueness is 
fatal to success. Statements to pupils should be definite and to 
the point. Telling pupils to write like the copy in the book; to sit 
like the illustration in the book; to make their work better, and 
giving other similar general directions is not teaching. The pupil 
who is given such indefinite instructions merely advances further 
into discouragement and adds to his already misdirected efforts 
in further intensifying his wrong habits. He must be told and 
shown in detail wherein he. should improve in position, pencil or 
pen holding, placement of arms, hands and paper, in movement, 
or letter forms, as his case may demand. Once given this specific 
and definite help there is little likelihood of his ever again being 
as bad off as before. Improvement is based upon the process of 
correcting errors. Every error corrected results in so much im¬ 
provement, and since no error can be corrected until it is seen as 
an error, it follows that nothing less than acquainting the pupil 
with his errors and showing him how to correct them can lead to 
improvement. 


Just as it is impossible for the pupil to correct his errors until he 
is able to see them distinctly as errors, so it is impossible for the 
teacher to direct the pupil toward improvement unless he under¬ 
stands definitely the elements involved in learning to write. He 
must understand the details of correct posture; of pencil or pen¬ 
holding ; of placement of paper; of letter structure; of the plan of 
procedure from lesson to lesson and from grade to grade. He must 
understand the nature of writing habits and how to develop them ; 
the value of concentration and how to induce it; the importance 
of sustained effort and how to secure it. This knowledge of the 
mechanics and pedagogy of learning to write is fundamental in 
teaching the subject and every conscientious teacher must feel 
the need of possessing it. 

Teachers should not try to find little, disconnected fragments 
in this text from which to construct makeshifts to help them 
through the term, but should study the entire text systematically, 
with the determined purpose of mastering its contents. The earnest 
teacher will be able to acquire a working knowledge of a subject 
in a comparatively short time by giving it systematic attention, 
and with such a knowledge the dread and uncertainty that possess 
most teachers as they think of teaching will be transformed into 
confidence and enthusiasm. 

Teachers should become fully possessed of the two-fold idea that 
writing should be correctly taught and that they can learn to 
teach it correctly. Correct teaching implies that the pupils learn, 
and this is the only true test of teaching. If the pupils’ penman¬ 
ship does not show early and noticeable improvement, it must be 
concluded that the teaching is at fault somehow and effort should 
be made to locate the trouble. It may be that the pupils do not 
know the details of accurate letter forms and are not learning 
them ; correct teaching will bring 'these to their knowledge. It 
may be that the pupils in the movement grades are not practicing 
the arm movement with sufficient speed or in the right form to 
develop the necessary freedom or to establish the desired writing 
movement habits; correct teaching will right these defects. It may 
be that the writing period is not as fixed and regular as are other 
recitation periods and the subject is thus discounted in the 
minds of the pupils; correct teaching will remedy this irregu- 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


109 


larity. It may be that writing is not properly emphasized in con¬ 
nection with the other subjects; correct teaching will establish its 
importance as a vehicle for handling all other branches. It may 
be that the spirit of the room is dull, listless and monotonous; 
correct teaching will make it vibrate with' enthusiasm. Thus if 
there is real teaching there will be real learning, just as, in busi¬ 
ness, if there is selling there will be buying. 

Each pupil should be provided with a copy of Hausam’s Prac¬ 
tical Writing Course of the number corresponding to his grade, 
except that pupils above the seventh grade should all use P>ook 
VII. Pupils in Grades I and II and the first half of the year 
in Grade III should do all their writing with pencils. Pen and 


ink should be used in all grades from the beginning of the fourth, 
and may be used from the middle of the third year. If the teach¬ 
er’s work is extra heavy, it is advisable to use pencil throughout 
the third year. If the work is light, pen and ink may be intro¬ 
duced at the middle of the year in Grade III. 

In Grades I, II and III the wide ruled paper that accompanies 
Books I, II and III should always be used, and in all grades above 
the third the narrow ruled paper that accompanies these books 
should be used. The ink should be black and clean. Colored inks 
should not be used. Fountain pens should never he used in pen¬ 
manship practice. The pens should be of the quality 7 described 
under the chapter on Writing Materials. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 1 

0 o0 cr 0 cr Off- 


See that each pupil is provided with Book I of Hausam’s Prac¬ 
tical Writing Course . the wide ruled paper that accompanies the 
book and a good lead pencil well pointed. (Read the chapters on 
Position and Materials for full directions). 

Take each pupil individually and by holding his hand with the. 
pencil in it show him how to draw the correct capital and small 
letter, explaining as the drawing progresses the following details: 
Where the letters begin in relation to the writing line; how the 
down strokes curve and slant; how the bottoms rest on the line; 
how the upstrokes are made and the letters closed at the top; liow 
the final stroke in the capital slants downward toward the fight 
and forms a loop; how the o has a slight retrace at the top, called 
a tick stroke, and is finished with a horizontal stroke. Call at¬ 
tention to the narrow spacing between the letters and to the 
wider spaces between the pairs of letters. Explain that the lines 


must all be very fine and that the capitals must all be of one 
height and the small letters all of one height and the small letters 
less than half as high as the capitals. 

Do not attempt the use of the arm movement in this grade but 
give the whole attention to learning the correct position of the 
body, the proper manner of holding the pencil and to learning the 
details of perfect letters. The pupil must get the forms of perfect 
letters clearly in mind and this is a large undertaking. He camioL 
be left to his own ingenuity 7 in learning these things but must be 
given minute directions at every step. The most serious mistake 
made in starting pupils in writing is in not giving them proper 
guidance in learning the details of form. By leaving them to learn 
by guessing, stumbling and blundering they succeed only in fixing 
erroneous forms in their minds and habituating their fingers to 
tracing the same. One correct form pictured in the mind and 



110 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


traced on the paper is worth more than making innumerable pages 
of incorrect forms. Quantity in itself means nothing at this stage. 

The heading should be simplified by omitting everything except 
the grade, date and first name of the pupil, and should be taught 
as carefully as the letters of the lesson. Even the grade may be 
omitted from the heading for a time if thought necessary as the 
subject matter of the work will identify the grade. But the date 
and first name should be written on the top line by the pupil, and 
these should be learned by the pupil with as much seriousness as 
the lesson itself. Most pupils should be required to write the 
heading (date and first name at least) on every line of a page 
or two at the outset to actually learn to make the letters the cor¬ 
rect style and with some degree of accuracy. 

Much care must be giyen to details of position, but teachers 
should not expect pupils to learn all about the subject in this 
grade. Simple ideas should be repeated in very simple form many 
times, such as holding the pencil so it will point between the elbow 
and shoulder; making the first joint of the first finger bend 
upward and never downward; sitting erect and squarely facing 
the desk. Writing on the ruled lines should be emphasized and 
letters not properly placed on the line should be considered almost 
as serious an error as if made incorrectly in form. Not only 
should the same amount of work as given in the copy line be made 


on each line by the pupil, but the four pairs of the letter should 
always be spaces to fill the line, and never crowded together at 
one end of the line. Spacing is to be given the same consideration 
as form. The relative size of the capital and small letter is also 
of as much importance as form, and uniformity throughout the 
line and throughout the full page are important features. The 
copies given in the texts are to be considered standards in every 
respect, which means for size, form, slant and spacing. Although 
individual pupils may make their work somewhat larger or 
smaller, or more or less slanted than the copies, the form and 
spacing should be strictly adhered to. The final strokes on the 
small letters always need careful attention as many pupils are 
inclined to make them incorrectly or omit them altogether, and 
thus seriously mar the beauty of the letter and often render it 
more or less illegible. Practically nothing should be taken for 
granted in this grade and the pupil should not be presumed to be 
capable of exercising safe judgment in respect to any unfamiliar 
detail. The only way to be sure that no wrong concepts will take 
form in the pupil’s mind or incorrect habits take inception is to 
show him how each detail should be made and see to it that he 
makes it as directed. No arm movement should be attempted in 
this grade. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 2 


O' Coes 

The directions given in connection with lesson one concerning 
the plan of holding the pupil’s hand with the pencil in it and 
moving it carefully to draw the capital and small letter should 
be used in this lesson. This plan has both the right psychological 


n> 

O' Lo co 

f 

and physiological effect. It gives the sensation to the writing 
nerves that, after sufficient repetition, will cause them to recog¬ 
nize the correct form, just as one may learn to recognize almost 
any object or form by feeling; and it will compel the formation of 





THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


111 


the correct picture of the letter in the mind. No other plan will 
accomplish so much in these all important particulars in so short 
a time. The special details in connection with this lesson that 
must be given attention are the following: 

1. See that the pupils are using well pointed pencils. 

2. See that the details of correct position are observed. 

3. As you guide the pupil’s hand in forming the letters of this 
lesson explain the following details: That the C begins at a point 
slightly below what is to be the full height of the letter; that a 
loop the same form as o is made but that no stop is made at the 
top of this loop; that a broad turn is made at the top of the C, 
making a space at the left of the beginning loop that is more than 
twice as wide as the loop itself; that the long down stroke has 
the same curve and slant as in the O; that the turn at the bottom 
is broader than the corresponding turn in the O, and that the final 
stroke extends upward as high as the c. Call attention to the 
kind of space left between the capital and small letter, and also 
between the pairs of letters. See that the pencil is placed at the 
proper point for commencing the c. Make a slight dot as the 
starting point of this letter; make a short turn at the top and a 
slightly curved down stroke slanted the same as the long down 
stroke in the C. Make the letter rest on the writing line and make 
the final up stroke as high as the top turn of the letter and as 
high as the final stroke in the C. 

4. Call attention to the fine lines, which should be of even 
quality. 

5. Make further and repeated explanations about the details of 
position and pencil holding. Emphasize the importance of proper 
arrangement of the work on the page; of keeping the paper clean, 
and of being extremely careful about every detail. 

It is of very little importance how many letters or lines the 
pupils in this grade make during a writing period; but it is of the 
greatest importance that they form correct pictures of the letters 


in their minds, and that they succeed in making some of these cor¬ 
rect forms on paper. It is also of first importance that they sit 
correctly and hold their pencils correctly. Merely telling them to 
do these things has long since been proved to be a waste of time 
and energy. They must be shown how and made to do them. It is 
the doing that determines what will he accomplished. What the 
teacher tells these pupils to do has but little weight, in itself, in 
determining results; but what the teacher succeeds in having the 
pupils do is always of more or less consequence. 

The teacher should not be influenced by the pupil’s complaints 
or protests that he cannot hold the correct position or make the 
letter of good form. When the pupil says: “I can’t!” the teacher 
must proceed quietly to show him that he can, by simplifying and 
clarifying the explanations and criticisms and pointing out the 
one most essential change to make. When the pupil finds that he 
is able to make a noticeable improvement in position or in a letter 
—which is always possible—his confidence in the teacher and in 
his own innate ability rises rapidly and he yields willingly to 
further instruction and criticism. 

The pupil has more than a week in which to learn each letter, 
according to the schedule, and correct teaching, although limited 
to but a few minutes each day, will accomplish much. Merely al¬ 
lowing the pupil to flounder and scribble, on the other hand, al¬ 
though for a much longer time, will accomplish nothing worth 
while; but will result in fixing in the pupil’s mind erroneous forms, 
and in his body habits of wrong position which he may never over¬ 
come, or which he may improve only with the most vigilant atten¬ 
tion on the part of future teachers. It should never be lost sight of 
that a single step in the right direction brings one nearer the de¬ 
sired goal than countless steps in the wrong direction. Though but 
a single step be taken by the pupil in learning to write let every 
effort be exercised toward making that step right. No arm move¬ 
ment should be attempted in this grade. 



112 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE I, BOOK I 


Lesson 3 



Since each succeeding letter is new to the pupil, and since the 
all important matter is to start the pupil right, the same pains 
must be exercised on each new letter as on the first in the course. 
The teacher should have the end to be gained clearly in mind and 
should feel the necessity in teaching each new letter in the same 
manner as outlined in connection with the first lesson. The pupil 
will become more and more responsive with each succeeding les¬ 
son and the time required to give the necessary individual help 
will be correspondingly shortened. There should, however, be no 
preventable cause left for his forming an erroneous concept or 
habit in connection with writing. The precept: All who try right 
learn to write right should be taken at its face value. 

In presenting this lesson the teacher should help the pupil in 
understanding and embodying in his work the following details: 

1. See that the lines he makes are fine, smooth and uniform. 
(This necessitates a pencil with a suitable point.) 

2. See that he maintains a good position of his body and the 
correct manner of holding his pencil and placing his paper. 

3. Have him make the upper part of the E smaller than the 
lower part and the loop between the two parts small, and pointing 
downward toward the right; make the upper part a half oval: 
set the letter on the ruled line; make the final stroke the same 
as in the C ; begin the letter with a plain curve; note the narrow' 
space between the capital and the small letter paired with it, and 
the wide space between the pairs of letters. 

4. Show 7 him that e begins on the ruled line; see that he makes 
its height in the right proportion to the E; makes the down stroke 
come dowrn to the ruled line and there makes a smooth turn, and 


makes the final up stroke just as high as the letter, and the same 
height as the final stroke in the E; and that he makes the down 
stroke of the letter as nearly straight as possible. 

5. Emphasize the requirement of a neat, well arranged page. 

The pupil’s progress can be judged only by his increasing 
tendency to assume the correct position unconsciously, or at least 
without having his attention called to it; by his increasing ability 
to produce improved letter forms, arranged more accurately on the 
line and page and sliowdng more uniformity in size and slant, and 
by his increasing ability to make smoother lines of the re¬ 
quired lightness. The improvements he will be able to make if 
properly directed will be a source of constant pleasure to him, as 
well as to the teacher and others w T ho examine his w r ork. 

If the pupil makes the same heavy lines and the same awkward, 
blundering attempts at letters, arranged in the same irregular and 
inartistic manner on the line and page from day to day, the 
teacher should realize that the presentation of the lesson cannot 
be correct. Rightly directed effort will inevitably bring improve¬ 
ment. The remedy lies in better direction. The criticisms must 
be more specific. General criticisms are of little if any value. 
The pupil must be told definitely what detail to change. To make 
a half dozen or more criticisms at once is of little value. The 
criticisms must be within the pupil’s pow 7 er to use or they are 
useless. 

Tell the pupil in some such terms as the following, w 7 hat to do: 
Make the lines light, by holding the pencil more loosely. Make the 
spaces between the pairs longer. Make the capitals larger and the 
small letters smaller. Make the columns of pairs straight down the 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


113 


page , Make the spacing the same as in the hook (placing the 
paper next to the copy to demonstrate this). Make the letters 
stand on the ruled lines. Begin the e on the ruled line. These are 
suggestions and it must be repeated that only one or two should 
be used at a time, giving the most serious errors first considera¬ 
tion. 

Some of the best constructive teaching is that which leads the 
pupils to ask intelligent questions, and directs them how to find 
answers to such questions. This makes of them good critics. 
Asking a pupil to point out the important details of a letter is a 
good plan. Illustrate why the little loop near the middle of the E 


should slant downward toward the right, by making a properly 
slanted oval on the blackboard and then another below it, allow¬ 
ing the second to overlap the first enough to make a very small 
loop. Erase the right side of each of the ovals. There will be 
remaining the general form of the E. The position of the small 
loop will be clearly indicated. Teach the pupil to recognize all 
the features of perfect letter forms at a glance, just as he is 
usually taught to recognize correctly spelled simple words, or 
correct simple mathematical equasions. With such pictures in his 
mind he will soon learn to make them on paper. 

No arm movement should be attempted in this grade. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 4 



Good concepts are necessary to make writing accurate, and a 
large share of the writing program in the first three grades must 
be devoted to building these necessary good concepts. This is one 
of the largest as well as one of the most important undertakings in 
elementary education and only the ill-prepared teacher will under 
estimate the value or the scope of the subject. True teaching in 
this subject will result in the pupil's becoming possessed of the 
idea that poor penmanship is as indefensible as poor music, poor 
spelling or poor language. It is possible to so instill into the 
child’s mind the correct letter concepts that it will rebel against 
errors in writing as promptly as pupils are now known to protest 
against errors in spelling, language or arithmetical equasions. 

The writing class is never to be “heard” or “held,” but must be 
taught. One minute spent in intelligent explanation and proper 
demonstration for the pupil is worth more to him than hours spent 
by him in vague, aimless, ignorant stumbling about over a lesson. 


Children seldom acquire and soon lose interest in the pursuit of 
a subject they do not understand, and on this account often con¬ 
sider writing intolerable. Pupils must be taught to appreciate 
correct forms, feel pleasure in developing skill, become good 
critics and understand the process of learning to write; and it 
is the province of good teaching to lead them into these expe¬ 
riences. 

The A is the fourth and last of the first group of capitals, all of 
which are based upon the direct oval. The capitals are presented 
in the order of their simplicity and the three already covered 
(O, C, E) all have the broad turn at the bottom. The A oval is 
practically the half of the O oval, and has a narrow turn at the 
bottom. The highest point in the A is the beginning point, and 
the first stroke is a down stroke throughout, and not an up stroke 
at the beginning as often incorrectly made. The curve in the first 
stroke in the A is the same as in the O or C but is slanted more 



114 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM 


and on this account is longer than in O and C, being an arc of a 
larger oval. The up stroke in A should have a very slight curve 
and should extend up to the beginning point of the letter. The 
final down stroke should be straight for fully two-thirds of its 
length, but should have a full curve near the bottom and should 
extend slightly below the writing line when made as a separate 
letter. There should be no retrace at the top of the letter in any 
of the strokes, for perfect accuracy. Call attention to the narrow 
space between the capital and its accompanying small letter, and 
to the wide spaces between groups. Insist on light lines; on good 
position; on uniformity of work; on correct arrangement on the 
line and page, and on neatness. 

The a begins at the top and the first stroke is made downward 
throughout and not upward at the beginning as it is often 
erroneously made. The second down stroke is straight. The two 
up strokes are alike in every way. There is no retrace at the 
top or in any part of the letter. The oval of the a slants more 
than the oval of the o. The slant of the o is the same as the 
slant of the second down stroke of the a, whereas, the slant of 
the a oval is the same as the up strokes of the a. The oval of 
the small a slants more than that of the capital A. This is be¬ 
cause the second down strokes in both letters have the same slant 
and the longer oval (in the capital) must stand at a less slant 
for a proper width in both. 

GRADE I, 



The teacher must now be presumed to appreciate the value of 
absolute thoroughness in presenting each lesson as outlined in 
the preceding lessons. In this and succeeding lessons only the 
details of the lessons will be explained. 


PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


In making the a it is very important that the oval slant prop¬ 
erly ; that the second down stroke be straight, and extend down 
to the line, and that the final stroke extend upward correctly 
to insure the complete distinction between this letter and the-o. 
It is also very important that the oval of the a be closed at the 
top to make the complete distinction between it and the c. Spe¬ 
cial care must be exercised to make pupils place both these 
letters on the line and to make each letter touch the line at two 
points, the second down stroke of the capital extending slightly 
below. 

It will add to the general completeness of the pupil’s knowledge 
of the work he has now covered to show the relation of the 
four capitals used, and explain the reason for arranging them 
in this particular order. This group is placed first because the 
direct oval is the easiest movement to make both with the 
finger movement and the arm movement, due to the peculiar re¬ 
lations of the muscles and bones in the fingers and arm. In 
the group the O is placed first because it adds the least to the 
simple oval. The C comes next because it adds the least new 
material and the E next for the same reason, the A is last be¬ 
cause it is the most difficult of the oval group. This is called 
the order of simplicity and these letters could not be placed in 
any other order and follow the rule of simplicity. No arm move¬ 
ment should be attempted in this grade. 

BOOK I 
•n 5 



letter of which has the same beginning stroke, called the con¬ 
trolling stroke. The little loop used in commencing the stroke is 
found in thirteen letters, or half the alphabet, and should be 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


115 


fully mastered. It is a good plan to practice the controlling 
stroke alone for a time to learn it thoroughly as this will make 
all the capitals of the group easier. The second part of the N is 
not as high as the first. In the n the two down strokes are 
straight. This letter begins on the line and the two straight 
down strokes stand on the line. The n must have a final up 


stroke. The spacing must be as given in the copy and for good 
page effect the columns must stand straight through the suc¬ 
cessive lines. There must be no loop and the least possible re¬ 
trace at the bottom of the first part of the N. The final stroke 
in the N is practically the same as in the A. All lines must be 
made light. 



GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 6 




/yyu 


Give further attention to the controlling stroke so that it will 
become more and more nearly perfect. The second part of the 
M is the same height as the second part of the N, and the third 
part is as much lower than the second as the second is lower 
than the first, making a uniform decrease in size. The two 
spaces between the parts are the same width. The first and 
second long down strokes are straight. In the m the three down 
strokes are straight. This letter begins on the line and it must 
have a final up stroke. The three parts of m are of even height. 
There are no retraces. On account of the greater width of these 


letters than others the spaces between pairs are narrower. The 
width between two connected parts of the capital is the same as 
between two connected parts of the small letter. The lines must 
all be of fine quality. Watch the position. The heading must be 
carefully prepared. The full page effect must be emphasized. 
Irregularity in spacing on the successive lines must be over¬ 
come. The margins must be even. All evidences of carelessness 
must be considered inexcusable, and pupils must be brought to 
realize that only painstaking work can be accepted. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 7 



116 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


The controlling stroke in the H is the same as in N and M, as 
it belongs to the same group. The second part of the H begins 
at the top at the same height as the controlling stroke. The 
second stroke' has a curve in the top part but for about two- 
thirds of its length it should be straight. At the bottom of the 
second stroke a sharp point is formed and a small loop is made 
to connect the two parts. The final stroke slants downward 
toward the right. In the h the loop extends as high as the 
capital. The down stroke of the loop is straight. The last part 
of the h is the same as the last part of n and m. The final up 
stroke in the h should not be slighted. Both the down strokes in 


the h are straight. The h is exactly like y inverted. The spacing 
should be carefully noted. Position should not be neglected. 
Light lines are of great importance. Keep the pencils well 
pointed. Require the columns down the page to be straight. 
Insist that the spacing be such as to fill the line properly. Never 
accept work that has the matter of the full line crowded toward 
one end. Try to get the pupil to point out some errors from time 
to time. Intelligent criticism is the most important element in 
teaching at this sage, and this implies that perfect forms must be 
used as the standard. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 

Lesson 8 

KJk Y-A YA 


The K is the last letter in the second group of capitals. The 
controlling stroke is the same as in N, M and H. The second 
part of the K begins the same as the second part of the H. 
Each part of the second part is a compound or double curve. The 
little loop at the middle of the second part is small and slants 
down toward the right like the loop in the E. This little loop 
connects the second part to the controlling stroke. In the k the 
loop is the same as in the h, having a straight down stroke. The 
second part is the same as the second part of the h to its highest 
point. The small oval in the second part is horizontal and is 


not closed. The short down stroke following the small oval is 
straight. The k must have a final up stroke. The capital and 
the small k are the same height. Spacing and light lines must 
not be slighted. The k is a little narrower at the bottom than 
the h. The final up strokes in all the small letters of this group 
(n, m, h, k) are alike. Page effect must be kept in mind in 
making criticisms. If succeeding lines do not have the same 
margins or spacing, the pupil’s attention should be directed to 
the irregularity, and he should be required to make the cor¬ 
rection before accepting the final page. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 9 


The Q introduces the third group of capitals and the first part 
of the letter to the bottom of the long stroke is the controlling 
stroke of this group. To this group belong Q, Z, X and W. The 


loop at the bottom of the Q is horizontal, thus making it lie 
flat on the line. The cross stroke at the bottom is a compound 
or double curve and must come down to the line after making the 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


117 



loop, and then extend upward for completing it. The Q is the 
same form as the figue 2 but is usually made larger. The q is 
the same form as the a with the loop below the line added. The 
long down stroke of the loop is straight. The loop is closed at 
the writing line and the final stroke extends as high as the oval 
of the letter. By taking the loop from a perfect q there is left a 
perfect a. By adding the loop to the a a q is made. The q must 
be closed at the top. There is no retrace at the point where the 



second part is joined to the oval. The spacing between letters 
in the couplets, and also between the couplets must be observed. 
The column effect on the paper must not be overlooked. All de¬ 
tails must be worked out with all possible exactness, as this is 
fundamental in learning the lessons thoroughly. The pupil should 
never be allowed to flounder aimlessly. Either he should be 
directed with care or stopped. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 10 

fT ?t ft ft 


The Z uses the third controlling stroke. The loop at the bot¬ 
tom does not lie flat like in the Q but does rest on the writing 
line the same as in Q. The loop below the line is not as long 
as the upper part. Care must be used not to curve the down 
stroke of the loop too much. The aim should be to make it as 
nearly straight as possible for a short distance at least. The 
upper part of the z is exactly like the first part of n, m and y 
and the last part of the li. This part has a straight down stroke 


and rests on the writing line. The loop below the line is the 
same as in the Z. It should be remembered that all loops below 
the line, except the one in the p, are the same length, and at the 
widest point the same width. The final up stroke in both the 
capital and small z should extend to the height of the z. The 
most common error made in the z is to make the top part an 
oval, instead of making the down stroke of this part straight. 
The details of spacing, margins, column effect, proper heading, 



118 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


light lines, position and page effect should be constantly watched. and are moving, for the most part, without aim or purpose, ex¬ 
it must be remembered that these pupils are without experience cept in so far as these are supplied by the teacher. 



GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 11 




The third controlling stroke, so far used in Q and Z, is used in 
the X. The second part commences at the same height as the 
first part and is made from the top downward. The second part 
is curved uniformly the entire length and touches the first part 
at the mdidle. The final up stroke is the same as the final 
stroke in many letters; such as the a, e, n, m, h and k. In the 
small letter the first stroke is the same as the first part of y 
and the last part of n, m and h. The down stroke is straight 
and slanted the same as the down strokes in n and m. The cross 
stroke is made upward and is a straight line slanted the same 
as the two up strokes of the first part, and is placed in the exact 


middle between the two other up strokes. It is very important 
to make a good final up stroke in the x. No part of either letter 
extends below the line. In the capital X it is necessary that both 
the long down strokes be well curved, otherwise the contact of 
the two parts will be too long. This point of contact should 
be short. The pupil’s position at the desk and in holding the 
pencil must not be neglected. The pencil must be held lightly 
and must point between the elbow and shoulder. The relative 
sizes of capitals and small letters must be kept in mind. The 
heading, spacing, light lines and page effect must not be over¬ 
looked. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 12 



The W is the last letter in the third group and the last that 
uses the third controlling stroke. The W is made entirely of 
curved strokes and the second part is the same height as the first 
part. Little or no retrace should be made at any of the joinings. 
The last part of the W is about two-thirds as high as the first 



and second parts. Special care must be used to keep from 
making the W too wide. In the w the main down strokes are 
straight and of equal length and are parallel. A slight retrace, 
called a tick stroke, is made at the top of the second part before 
making the final stroke. This retrace, or tick stroke, is the same 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


119 


in o, y, w and b, and is necessary to make a good finish and to 
make it possible to join to another letter, especially e, accurately. 
Because these letters each occupy considerable space the space 
is shorter between the pairs than with most other letters. There 
should be no loops made at the bottom of the W, and the join¬ 
ings should never be made round, as this is likely to cause con¬ 


fusion between this letter and the U. Making a loop at the top 
of the second part should be avoided, also. It requires special 
care to slant the second part like the first. The second long 
down stroke has the least curve of any stroke in the W. All the 
details must be noted in making criticisms. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 13 


AA U AA 

The Y introduces the fourth controlling stroke and the fourth 
group of capitals, which includes the V, U and Y. The initial 
loop is the same as in the second and third controlling strokes, 
but the long down stroke is a compound or double curve. The 
upper half of the long down stroke is the same as the upper half 
of the long down stroke in the second controlling stroke but the 
lower half is a left curve. This compound curve feature must be 
given special attention. The turn at the bottom is short and the 
final stroke is also a compound curve. The v is the same form 
as the second part and final stroke of the w. The tick stroke is 
to be especially noted. The main down stroke in the v is straight. 



All the up strokes in the v are right curves and both parts are 
pointed at the top. The second part of the Y extends to the same 
height as the parts of N and M, and is not as high as the first 
part. It should be especially noted how the final stroke curves 
outward, sharply, from the first part, at the top, at the same 
time making the space between the down and up strokes quite 
narrow. Improvement should be noticeable in the quality of the 
heading, in the lines and in the whole page effect. Criticism 
should be more and more definite and directed to details with 
ever increasing exactness from lesson to lesson. 



GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 14 



The controlling stroke in U is the same as in V. The long up left curve and extends slightly below the line. There should be 
stroke is a plain right curve. The final down stroke is a plain no loop and the least possible retrace at the top of the second 



120 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


part. The u is composed of two parts which are alike and the 
same form as the first part of the w. The three up strokes in 
the u are alike in slant, curvature and length. The two down 
strokes are alike in slant and length and are both straight. 
Special care must be used to commence the u on the line and to 
make the final up stroke the full height. The letter should be 
inverted and compared with n and m and the last part of h. 
Spacing, arrangement on the page, neatness and uniformity must 

GRADE I, 
Lesso 



not be lost sight of from lesson to lesson. The final down stroke 
in the U is practically the same as the corresponding stroke in 
the A. The second part of the U is the same height as the second 
part of N, M and V, and is not as high as the first part. The 
width between the two down strokes of the u is the same as 
between the two down strokes of the U. Continuous effort 
should be made to lead the pupil to discovering his errors him¬ 
self. Skillful questioning will help in this development. 


BOOK I 
i 15 



This is the third and last letter of the fourth group, the group 
in which the fourth controlling stroke is used. This letter is the 
same form as the capital LT to the top of the second part. The 
long down stroke used in making the loop is a straight^ line, and 
the loop is the same size as the loops in q and z already studied. 
The crossing of the loop is at the line, and from the crossing to 
the lower end of the loop the letter is shorter than from the writ¬ 
ing line to the top of the first part. The y is the same form as 
the h, inverted. The loop is the same in the capital and small 
letter, and this should be especially noted in teaching the letter. 
The first part of the y is the same as the first part of the x and 


the last part of n, m and h. If the first up and down strokes in 
y are omitted the remaining part makes the j. The final strokes 
in the Y and y are alike. The width between the down strokes 
of both Y and y is the same. It is a good test to convert the 
capital into the small y and the small letter into the capital, 
occasionally, by changing the top parts and leaving the lower 
loops. Fine line quality must not be overlooked. Speed is not to 
be considered, if form must suffer. The purpose is to perfect the 
concepts of form. No arm movement should be attempted in 
this grade. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 16 

This lesson introduces the fifth and sixth controlling strokes , capitals, comprising in the fifth group the T, F and D; and in 

which are alike and are used in the fifth and sixth groups of the sixth group the P, B and R. In the T the long down stroke 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


121 



is made first and the cap is made last. A broad turn must be 
made at the bottom of the stem stroke and a stop must be made 
for the point before making the final stroke. In the cap the 
loop is practically the same as in the eleven preceding capitals 
and the tail to the cap is a plain curve having a generally hori¬ 
zontal position, or drooping somewhat at the final end. In the t 
the long down stroke is straight. The initial upstroke joins the 
straight down stroke at the height of the n, m. i and all the 


other minimum tetters. The lower part of t is the same form as 
the i. The cross stroke is straight and is placed at twice the 
height of the minimum letters. The cross stroke and the main 
stroke of the t if correctly made, make a well proportioned 
ordinary cross. The stem and the top of the T must not conflict. 
The stem must be made the correct height so that when the top 
is put on the full height of the letter will be the same as other 
capitals. Give all necessary care to full page effect. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 17 






The F, which is the second capital in the fifth group, is the 
same form as the T with the extension of the stroke that crosses 
the stem, and the tick stroke. This tick stroke is straight and 
short, and must be close to the stem. As in the T the stem 
stroke is made first and the cap last. In the f the upper loop is 
the same form as the loops in h and k and the lower loop is 
the same form as the loop in q. If the two loops are cut off at 
the crossings the remaining middle part is the i. The long 
down stroke in f is straight. The upper loop crosses at the 
height of the minimum letters (i, e, a, n, m, etc.) and the lower 


loop closes at the writing line. The loops above and below are 
the same length and the same width. The f commences on the 
writing line and extends as high as the capital. The cross stroke 
in the F, while at the middle of the stem, is below T the middle of 
the full height of the letter. The attention given to detailed criti¬ 
cisms must be somewhat more specific from lesson to lesson as 
the pupil learns to appreciate accuracy of form. The headings 
should be written with more care and accuracy, also. The line 
quality should show improvement. The spacing throughout the 
line and the page must show that it is approaching the ideal. 





122 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 18 



The D commences the same as the T and F because it has 
the same controlling stroke. The loop at the bottom of the stem 
stroke is the same as the loop in the Q. The space between the 
stem and the long up stroke is narrow. The oval turn over the 
top is well rounded. The long up stroke crosses the stem stroke 
near the top. The D rests on the writing line at two points. In 
the d the part below the loop is the same form as a, and if the 
loop of the q or the lower loop of the f were added below and 
the upper loop were omitted it would make a perfect q. The 
loop in the d is narrower and shorter than the loop is in h, k and 
f. The down stroke of the loop is straight. The final stroke ex¬ 


tends as high as the oval of the letter. The d rests on the writing 
line at two points. Give attention to spacing and uniformity. 
Details to which special attention should be directed are to keep 
from turning the loop at the bottom of the D upward at the left 
end, and to keep from setting this loop upright, since either 
modification will have a bad effect on the loops at the bottom 
of the Q and L. In the small d special care must be exercised to 
make the loop smaller than the 1, h, k and f, as above mentioned, 
and at the same time make a distinct loop. Light lines must 
always be insisted upon, and good page effect must not be over¬ 
looked. » 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 19 



The P is the first letter in the sixth group and uses the sixth 
controlling stroke, which is the same form as the fifth, and the 
same as already used in the T, F and D. The turn at the bottom 
of the stem is the same form of well rounded turn as used in the 
T and F. The long up stroke is a plain left curve and stands 
parallel with the stem stroke. The main body of the P is the 
same width throughout. Special care must be used not to make it 


wider near the bottom than near the top. The space between the 
stem and the final stroke is narrow. The final stroke crosses the 
stem twice. The p extends to the same height as the t and d. 
The lower loop is the same form as the loop of d. If the p is 
inverted it will be seen that the loop and oval are the same as in 
d. The point at which last crossing is made in the P is at the 
middle of the height of the letter. The P should be mastered with 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


123 


all possible exactness since it is used in practically its complete 
form in the two succeeding capitals, B and R. Special care should 
be used to make the final stroke of the P turn upward, since this 
will be helpful in making the minute loop in the B and R. In¬ 


creased emphasis should be placed on fine line quality and good 
page effect. The spacing must be accurate. The necessity of 
copying each successive line from the book must be dwelt upon. 



GRADE I, BOOK I 


Lesson 20 




The B, which is the second letter in the sixth group, is the same 
form as the P to the point where the small loop is made across 
the stem. This little loop is at the middle of the letter and is the 
same form and has the same position as the little loops in E and 
K, slanting downward toward the right. This is very important. 
In the b the loop is the same form as the loops in h and k and the 
upper loop in the f. The second part is the same form as the last 
part of the v and w. If the loop were cut off the remaining part 
of the b will form a perfect v. The tick stroke at the top of the 
second part needs careful attention, it being a short retrace. The 
capital and small letter are the same height. The long down 


stroke in the b is straight. Renewed care should be given to page 
effect. The crossing of the loop in the b is at the height of the 
i and other minimum letters, and also at the height of the second 
part of the letter. All effort must be made to keep the pupil from 
copying the second and succeeding lines from his own work in¬ 
stead of from the copy in the book. The spacing should be con¬ 
sidered a feature of quite the same importance as the form. The 
letters of the copy should be distributed properly throughout the 
line. The line quality must always be taken into account. It 
must be fine and even. The heading must also be brought up and 
kept up to the proper standard. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 21 



The R is the last letter of group six, and the last to use the 
sixth controlling stroke. This letter is the same form as the B 
to the completion of the small loop. The final stroke is the same 



form as the final stroke in the capital Iv. Special care must be 
exercised to make the small loop slant downward toward the right, 
and to make the main body of the R of uniform width throughout 



124 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


its entire length. The r extends a little higher than do the o, c, 
e, n, m. and other minimum letters and belongs to the group called 
“ medial” small letters, which includes only the r and s. A slight 
retrace, or tick stroke, is made at the top of the r, and is followed 
by an oblique stroke and a short turn. The remaining part of the 
letter is like the last part of a, n, m, etc. The main down stroke 
in the r is straight. Special attention must be given the r since it 
is doubtless one of the most difficult small letters. A style of r 


made by retracing upward on the main down stroke and placing a 
dot or tick stroke at the top, should not be used in plain writing 
since it is easily confused with the o and v, if not made accurately. 
Fine lines, accurate spacing, correct margins, the proper heading 
and pleasing page effect are elements to be taken into account in 
every lesson, and they should all be brought to a higher standard 
from lesson to lesson. 



GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 22 



0 A 


The S introduces the seventh controlling stroke and the seventh 
group of capitals. It is one of the four capitals (S, G, I, J) which 
begin with up strokes. In long initial up strokes is a full right 
curve. The loop at the top extends over half the length of the 
letter. The lower part of the S is similar to the corresponding 
part of the T. Special care must be used in making the point 
where the final stroke begins. The s has the same form of initial 
up stroke and retrace (tick stroke) at the top as the r. The down 
stroke of the s is a compound curve, followed by a well rounded 
turn at the bottom. The turn at the bottom extends to the 
initial stroke where a slight dot may be formed. The final stroke 


is the usual form found in many letters and extends to the regular 
height of minimum letters. The S should be well mastered as it 
is one of the most difficult letters. Pupils should be continually 
encouraged to compare their letters in detail with those in the 
book, and to try to find their errors. They must learn to recognize 
the perfect form and to detect all variations from the perfect 
standard. It is good practice to ask them to point out differences 
between their work and the copy. They should be tested on 
making fine lines, by having them make mere lines and noting the 
effect of varying qualities and then trying to make letters with 
only fine lines. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 23 


The G is the second letter in the seventh group. In it the initial 
up stroke and the loop at the top are the same as in the S. The 
turn at the bottom of the loop is followed by an upward stroke 
extending to half the height of the loop. The remainder of the 
G is practically the same form as the corresponding part of the 
T. In the g the oval and the following straight down stroke to 


the writing line are the same form as the corresponding parts of 
the a, d and q. The loop is the same form as the loop in y. If the 
first down stroke of the g were omitted the remaining part of the 
letter would make a j. If the loop of the g were turned toward 
the right instead of toward the left a q would be formed. The 
crossing of the loop is at the line. The pupil should be required 





THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


125 



to do more and more studying of the details of form on his own 
account and should become more and more critical in matters cov¬ 
ering the heading, the spacing, margins, line quality and page ef¬ 
fect. It is well to ask pupils to criticise their work in these par¬ 



ticulars, and then try to make the necesary corrections in prepar¬ 
ing another page of work. Such matters as uniformity in height 
and slant must not be overlooked. The position must be kept in 
mind. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 24 



The L is the last letter in the seventh group. The loop at the top 
is the same as the loop in S and G and the long down stroke is the 
same as the corresponding part in S. The loop at the bottom is 
the same form as the bottom loops in Q and D and must lie flat 
on the line. Special care must be used to keep from tipping the 
loop up at either end. The L rests on the line at two points. The 
1 has the same loop as the h, k, f and b. It is as high as the L. 
The down stroke of the loop is straight. If the loop were cut off 
at the crossing the remaining part of 1 would be an i. If the loop 
of q were added at the bottom it would be transformed into an f. 
As the work becomes easier more attention should be given to 


neatness, perfcet arrangement, fine line quality, and the finer de¬ 
tails of form. Pupils should be taught to note the uniformity in 
the slant of the L and 1, and also in the height of the two letters. 
The more closely the pupil can be taught to observe, the more 
rapid will be his progress in writing, and the more helpful will the 
writing lessons be beyond this subject. Position must always have 
its share of attention and the bad effect of gripping the pencil 
must be shown in the heavy lines produced One line of work 
written with all the care a pupil can be trained to put into it is 
worth more than pages of careless work. 




126 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE I, BOOK I 


Lesson 25 



The I introduces the eighth and the last group of capitals, which 
includes only the I and J. It is usxially difficult for the pupils to 
make the initial up stroke of I slanted toward the right, and this 
point should have special attention. The turn at the top is narrow 
and the long down stroke is nearly straight for most of its length. 
The bottom part of the letter is practically the same as the cor¬ 
responding parts of T, S and G. The letter begins on the writing 
line with a stroke directly upward. Care must be exercised to 
keep from commencing the letter with a downward stroke, or 
with a stroke running toward the left. The i is one of the most 
simple of the small letters. The two up strokes are alike and 


parallel and the down stroke is straight. It is important to begin 
the i on the line and to make a complete final stroke. The dot of 
the i is in direct line with the down stroke and as high above the 
letter as the letter is high. All the elements of position must be 
constantly emphasized. The necessity of making fine lines must 
be kept before the pupil. The accuracy of the heading must be 
insisted upon. Page effect must be regarded as of the highest im¬ 
portance. The child should become interested in the possibility 
of making a perfect letter, and during every lesson should come as 
near as possible to this attainment. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 26 




The J is the second and last letter in the eighth group and the 
last letter in the alphabet. This is the only letter in the alphabet 
that commences below the writing line. The initial up stroke is 
the same form as in the I but is slightly longer on account of com¬ 


mencing slightly below the line. The turn at the top is about 
twice as broad in the I. The long down stroke is straight. The 
lower loop is the same form as the lower loops in y and g, and the 
two loops cross at the same point, which is at the writing line. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


127 


The first part of the j is the same as the beginning of i. The 
loop is the same as in z, y and g and in the capitals of the same 
letters. It is of great importance to see that the J is made on the 
regular slant with other letters. The test is made in the long 
down stroke. It must be straight and slanted like all main down 
strokes. The lower loop in the J is about half as wide as the 


upper loop, and two-thirds as long. Especial care should be exer¬ 
cised to see that both lower loops (J and j) are made alike in all 
details. The pupil’s mental grosp of the details of form should 
be tested and developed as fully as possible. Everything he does 
should be prompted by his most intelligent direction. This should 
have the proper direction of the teacher. 


GRADE I, BOOK I 
Lesson 27 


/ c 8 U S (o 



It is a good plan to have pupils commit to memory the following 
rhymes: 

The 4 and 6 will look the best extended higher than the rest; 
And it improves the 7 and 9 if they extend' below the line; 

But all the rest are only right when written at an even height. 

It is very important that pupils learn to make the numerals 
accurately since they usually represent values. Many losses have 
been reported as resulting from poorly made numerals. The 3 and 
5 have often been confused, and the 7 and 9 also. A break in the 
S at the bottom and failure to cross the two strokes at the top has 
caused it to be mistaken for 4. The 1 and 7 have often been con¬ 
fused because a short up stroke was attached to the 1 at the top. 
The 2 has been mistaken for an ordinary check mark because it 
did not have the loop and horizontal stroke at the bottom. 

The final horizontal stroke at the top of the five must be at¬ 


tached to the straight down stroke of the figure. There should be 
straight strokes in the 1, 4, 6, 7 and 9. All the numerals are to 
be made slightly larger than the minimum, small letters. The 2 
touches the line at two points, and is the same form as Q but much 
smaller. The 7 has a tick stroke at the beginning. The 8 begins 
with the oval curve at the top as indicated by the arrow and the 
plain curve is an up stroke for completing the figure. The 6 is the 
same form as the second controlling stroke in the capitals, but 
inverted and much smaller. The nought is the same form and has 
the same slant as the o, and the oval of the 9 is the same and has 
the same slant as the oval in a. It must be closed at the top. The 
little loop near the middle of the 3 slants upward toward the left. 

Pupils are usually required to make many numerals during the 
day in preparing other lessons and such work should be strictly 
guarded to insure the forming of proper habits of making them. 
There are so few of the numerals that they may be quickly learned 
with the application of strict care and proper teaching methods. 




128 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 1 



The pupil should be given a little more responsibility in this 
grade than is safe in Grade I. He should write the complete 
heading as given in the illustration on another page, and should be 
required to write it quite well, covering accurately the points of 
correct styles of letters, correct capitalization, punctuation and 
spacing. If necessary he should be required to write the heading 
on every line for a page or more to give him a full opportunity 
to learn to write it. That he should learn to write it well is an 
essential part of his writing course. The lesson should be divided 
into four parts for preliminary practice—the O’s, capital and 
small, in the first part; the C’s in the second; the oc co in the 
third, and the numerals in the fourth. Each part should be worked 
on one day and the entire lesson the fifth day. 

It is necessary to proceed as outlined in the first lesson for 
Grade I. holding the pupil’s hand with the pencil in it and helping 
him to draw the letters accurately, at the same time directing his 
attention to the beginning of the O, the slant and curvature of the 
down stroke, the turn at the bottom on the writing line, the slant 
and curvature of the up stroke, the manner of closing at the top 
and the details of finishing the letter. Special attention must be 
called to the position of the final loop in the O, and to the slight 
retrace, called the tick stroke, at the close of the oval in the o, 
just before the final horizontal stroke. The spacing must be ex¬ 
plained clearly. 

In teaching the sqcond section, the O’s, the same process must 
be used. It must be remembered that it is not teaching to tell 
the pupil, in the primary grades, to make the work like it is in the 
book. He must be shown the details of the letters and shown how 


to make the letters so they will embody these details. Without 
being shown he will make what he thinks is the form, but it will 
almost invariably be incorrect, and the incorrect form he prac¬ 
tices will be the form impressed upon his mind. This will do him 
almost irreparable harm. The pupil’s hand should be guided in 
making the C and it must be explained to him how to begin and 
how to proceed throughout the letter, making the explanation as 
the letter is being drawn. Such points as. the position of the 
initial loop—not in the exact top of the letter but down somewhat 
on the right side from the top; the space at the left of the initial 
loop—more than twice as wide as the loop; the broad turn at the 
bottom, all must be clearly indicated to the pupil. In the c show 
that the letter begins with a minute dot, followed by an up stroke. 
At the bottom the turn is somewhat broader than at the top and 
the final stroke must extend as high as the main part of the 
letter. In the oc co the connecting strokes need special attention. 
Both are slightly compounded to change from the right curve with 
which each letter is finished, to the left curve used in commencing 
the letters. The necessity of uniformity in height and slant must 
be emphasized. The spacing must be clearly indicated. 

The numerals must be treated the same as the letters. The de¬ 
tails of the 2 and 3 must be made perfectly clear and definite from 
the beginning. The flat loop at the bottom of the 2, and the 
horizontal compound curve, which touches the line after crossing 
the main down stroke of the figure, must be shown. The initial 
loop and the little loop near the middle of the 3 must be carefully 
explained and shown by drawing them. 

After the four parts of the lesson have been worked out as in- 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


129 


dicated in the foi'egoing explanation the entire lesson should be 
made as a whole, and all the details should be insited upon. 
Spacing is one of the most important features of good writing, 
and uniformity of slant and size are others, and these must never 
be slighted. One line accurately drawn in all these respects is 
worth more than many pages of mere scribbling or work done 
without proper consideration of these details, no matter how pains¬ 
takingly done. It is concept building that is aimed at and the 


concepts formed in the pupil’s mind will be determined much more 
by what he does than by what he is told or what he merely sees 
in the book. 

The details of position must never be neglected. Constant re¬ 
minding is necessary to make progress in establishing correct 
habits of position. No arm movement should be attempted in 
Grade II. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 2 



This lesson should be divided into three sections for preliminary 
study and practice—the E’s in the first; the A’s in the second, 
and the ae ea in the third. The heading must first be written 
with acceptable accuracy, and the position must be correct. 

The pupil must be aided in drawing the letters accurately so he 
may learn quickly the true form and thus avoid accumulating in 
his' mind erroneous concepts. It must be kept in mind that the 
pupil’s problem in learning to make the script forms is not merely 
learning to recognize them as is the case with printed letters. It 
will be noted that pupils learn to read well without actually 
knowing the details of perhaps a single printed letter, or being 
able to reproduce one with any degree of accuracy. In learning to 
read the pupil merely acquired a sufficient acquaintance with the 
general aspect of letters to enable him to recognize them at sight, 
just as he learns to recognize a flower, or dog, or horse. He does 
not become familiar with the details of form in reading, and the 
mistake is widespread of considering the script forms from the 
reading standpoint also, which is far from sufficient. Considered 


from the writing standpoint the pupil has not learned the letter 
until a clean-cut, definite impress of it in all its details has been 
made on his mind. This principle is the same as in learning draw¬ 
ing, and in the primary grades learning the script forms is draw¬ 
ing. 

The pupil must be taught the details of a perfect letter in the 
same way that he must be taught the details of a flower, or face, 
or chair in drawing, and he must perfect his concept by repeated 
efforts at making it. It will be readily understood that the pupil 
cannot learn to draw a perfect face, or flower, or chair by making 
grotesque caricatures of it, no matter how many times he may re¬ 
peat the effort. Correct teaching will show him how to draw 
these, after which his efforts will doubtless mean progress. 

In the letters of this lesson the following details must be given 
particular attention: 

The upper part of the E is slightly more than a half oval; the 
little loop near the middle of the letter slants downward toward 
the right; a line drawn along the backs of the two parts, just 



130 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


touching both, must be on the slant with all letters; the lower 
part has a full turn at the line and the final stroke extends up as 
high as the e. The e commences on the writing line and extends up 
less than half the height of the capital; the down stroke in the e 
should be made as nearly straight as possible; the final up stroke 
extends as high as the loop. The A commences at its highest point 
with a down stroke; the letter is practically a half oval; the up 
stroke extends to the beginning point; the final down stroke is 
practically straight for most of its length and has a decided curve 
near the lower end which extends slightly below the writing line. 
The beginning point in the a is its highest point, at which point the 
oval is closed; the second down stroke is straight and extends to 
the writing line; the final up stroke is the same form as in the e 
and also extends to the same height. The connecting stroke be¬ 
tween the ea is a compound curve. 

The spacing must be given careful attention and is practically 
uniform between all letters in the lesson. The e and a are the 


same height and the capitals are of even height. The letters should 
be made in even columns down the page and should be spaced 
correctly across the page. 

The lines must all be light. The pencils must be kept well 
pointed and pupils must be made to understand that line quality is 
very important. When erasing is done it should be well done— 
the paper being cleaned thoroughly. Messy work should never be 
permitted. Neatness is one of the chief elements in good writing. 

The pupil’s work should be carefully criticised and all criticisms 
should be constructive—showing the pupil what is wrong and 
exactly how to make the necessary correction. This is done by 
drawing the correction on the pupil’s work. Size of letters must 
also be subjected to careful study. The pupil should make the 
letters approximately the size given in the book in this grade. 
Larger work is hardly permissible but the work may be slightly 
smaller. No arm movement should be attempted in this grade. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 3 



This lesson may be taken up as a whole and attention should be 
directed to the following: Correct heading, with the correct styles 
of letters, proper spacing, capitalization and punctuation; correct 
position of the pupil at the desk and correct manner of holding 
the pencil; well pointed pencil. In the formation of the letters it 
should be noted that the first long down stroke in the N and 
both the down strokes of the n are straight, and that the final 
down stroke in the capital is only slightly curved and extends 
slightly below the line. The final up stroke of the small letters 


must all extend to the height of the letters. The connecting 
strokes between a and n, and between o and n are all compound 
curves. The 7 begins with a tick stroke and extends below the 
line. The 8 begins with an oval stroke at the top followed by the 
vertical compound curved down stroke. The two strokes cross. 
Between the two n’s and between the words on and no there are 
no vertical spaces left—the beginning point of the initial stroke 
of the second n and of the word no being directly beneath the 
finishing point of the final stroke of the preceding letter in each 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


131 


case. But between the second n and the word an and between the letters, a and o. The utmost pains must be insisted upon to secure 
words an and on there are slight intervening vertical spaces. This fine lines and the best page effect, 
is due to the omission of the introductory strokes on the oval 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 4 



This lesson should be taken up as a unit. The matter of posi¬ 
tion should be carefully watched. Require fine lines, and see that 
the pencils are in condition to make them. All the down strokes 
except three in the letters of this lesson are straight. The three 
exceptions are the first and last in the M and the first in the a. 

All the small letters and all the parts of these letters are of even 
height. The final up strokes must not be slighted but must be the 
height of the small letters. No part of any letter, except the last 
down stroke of M, extends below the line. The 3 has two small 
loops. The one near the middle slants downward slightly at the 
right end. The 3, as all numerals, is slightly higher than the 
minimum small letters. The successive parts of the M all show a 

GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 5 


gradual decrease in height. No vertical spaces are left between 
the m’s and the second m and me, but a slight vertical space is 
left between the words me and am, due to the omission of the 
introductory stroke on the a. The matter of spacing between 
parts of letters, between joined letters and between words must 
have very close attention. The pupil should be required to make 
the spacing throughout the line such as to distribute the letters 
properly over the whole line. It is very bad practice to bunch the 
work at one end of the line, or write the lesson several times on 
the line. Learning to do the work strictly right must be the aim 
always. 





The H is the third letter in the second group of capitals and has of the letter commences at the top at the same height as the con- 

the same controlling stroke as the N, M and K. The second part trolling stroke. This second stroke is curved slightly near the top 



132 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


but the remainder of the stroke is straight. A sharp point (no 
loop or retrace) is used at the bottom of the second stroke. The 
loop joining the two parts is small and the final stroke extends to 
the height of the minimum letters. The h commences at the line 
and extends as high as the capital. The loop in h crosses at the 
height of the minimum letters and both down strokes are straight. 
The final up stroke extends as high as the second part. The h is 
the y inverted. The e, o and a should be made as explained in 
preceding lessons. All the loops must be as high as the capitals 


and the second part of h and the e, o, a and m are uniform in 
height. No vertical spaces are left between any of the single 
letters or words in this lesson. The second part of h is the same 
form as the last part of m. The slight retrace should be noted 
at the top of the o, where the final stroke is attached. It should 
be noted that the ovals of the o and a do not slant alike—the a 
oval being slanted more than the o oval. Making a good heading 
and producing a pleasing page are two features that must not be 
lost sight of. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 

Lesson 6 



The K is the last letter in group two and has the same con¬ 
trolling stroke as N, M and H. The second part of the K com¬ 
mences like the second part of the H. Both parts of the second 
part are compound curves. The little loop near the middle ap¬ 
pears to loop around the controlling stroke and should be placed 
to slant down toward the right. The loop in the k has a straight 
down stroke like the h. The second part begins like the second 
part of h. The oval in the second part is horizontal and is not 
closed. The second down stroke is straight. The final up stroke ex¬ 
tends to the height of the second part. The comparative slants of 
o and a must be noted. The o slants the same as the second, or 


straight down stroke of the a. The long straight strokes in 7 and 
9 are alike. The 7 has a tick stroke. The 8 commences with the 
oval stroke. This is a very important point. The k is slightly 
narrower than the h between the two straight down strokes where 
they rest on the writing line. The vertical space is left only be¬ 
tween the second k and the word oak, in this lesson. The pupil 
should be encouraged to study the details and be able to point out 
details when questioned. He should be directed to compare his 
work carefully with the copy at frequent intervals. Special care 
must be exercised to keep him from copying from his own work, 
after his first line. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 7 


The Q is the first capital in the third group and uses the same part of the q above the writing line is the same as a. The lower 
controlling stroke as the Z, X and W. The loop at the bottom of loop is the same as in f and must close at the line. The long 
the Q must lie flat on the line. The Q is like a 2 but larger. The down strkoe in q is straight. The down strokes in the u are 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


133 



straight and parallel and of even height. The final up strokes on 
q and u must extend to the height of these letters. The numerals 
must have careful attention. The last stroke in the 4 is higher 
than the others. The tick stroke at the top of the o oval must be 
noted. Position, fine lines, uniformity, correct heading and proper 
page arrangement must never be lost sight of. Every page should 
show painstaking and intelligent work. The vertical spaces, 
though narrow, are left between the single q’s; between the sec¬ 


ond q and qu, and between the qu and quo. This is true because 
the oval of the q does not have an introductory stroke when 
used alone or at the beginning of a word. The loops in the q are 
the same length and width as the loops in f, g and y. The pupil 
must be required to do some thinking on his own part and fre¬ 
quent simple questions should be asked to test his comprehension 
of the details of form. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 8 



The Z is the second letter of the third group of capitals, which 
also includes the Q, X and W. The loop at the writing line does 
not lie quite flat on the line as in the Q. The loop below the line 
is the same size as the loops in Y and J and in q, z, y, g and j. The 
crossing of the loop is at the line. In the z the first part is the 
same as the first part of n or m. A short horizontal curve is made 
at the bottom of the first part. The loop crosses at the writing 


line. The tick strokes in the o’s are to be noted. The tick stroke 
in the 7 must not be omitted. The long straight strokes in 7 and 
9 are alike. The 8 must not be made backward but must com¬ 
mence with the oval curve going toward the left across the top 
and must end with the plain left curve up stroke. Heading and 
position must be considered essential parts of the lesson. The 
$ and $ sign should have some special study. The top part of the 




134 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


z will usually require more attention than any other element in 
this lesson, to make it the same form as the first pa'rt of n or m, 
and not in the form of an oval. The top part of the z must be 
even in height with the o’s and the a. The difference in the slant 


of the o and a ovals must be noted. The a slants more than the o. 
The full page must be pleasing in arrangement and neatness. 
Pupils must be made to understand that careless work will not be 
given a passing grade. 



GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 9 



The X is the third capital in the third group. The controlling 
stroke is the same as in Q, Z and W. The second part commences 
at the top at the same height as the controlling stroke. The two 
parts must meet at the middle. The final up stroke of the X ex¬ 
tends as high as the minimum small letters. In the x the first 
stroke is the same as the last part of n, m and h and the first part 
of y. The down stroke in the first part is straight. The second 
part is a straight up stroke, made on the same slant as the two 
other up strokes and is placed in the middle of the space between 
them. The tick stroke at the top of the third part of the w must 


be given special attention. Uniformity of size and slant and 
spacing is very important. The 6 extends higher, and the 7 lower 
than the 5 and 8. The top of 5, the tick stroke in 7 and the be¬ 
ginning stroke of S require special consideration. A line drawn 
through the middle of the length of the a oval would be on the 
same slant as the cross stroke in the x. The x needs very special 
attention to be sure that the straight down stroke in the first part 
is placed on the proper slant. Pupils very often make it vertical 
or give it a back slant. The final strokes in X and x are alike. 
Fine line quality must always be emphasized. 



The W is the fourth and last letter of the third group and has 
the same controlling stroke as the Q, Z and X. All the strokes in 
W are curved. The first and second parts are of even height. 


The last up stroke is not as high as the other parts. The two 
sharp points at the bottom and the one at the top need special 
attention. There should be no retrace, if it can be prevented, and 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


135 


should be no loops or round joinings at the bottom of the W. In 
the w the tick stroke at the top of the second part needs special 
care. Both the down strokes in the w are straight. The tick 
stroke at the top of the o needs attention. In this lesson the 
great importance of the tick stroke in w will be seen. Without 
it the e will invariably be made too high. Uniformity in height 
and spacing should be emphasized continually. The relative 
heights of capitals and small letters must be given consideration 


in every lesson. The spaces between the separate letters and 
words must be given great care. The final up strokes in the two 
words must not be omitted. It is a very common error to omit 
final up strokes. The full page effect should show continuous 
improvement. The heading should have proper care in each les¬ 
son. No specimen should be given a final passing grade until it is 
certain that the pupil has not been guilty of carelessness. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 


Lesson 11 




/ P 


The Y introduces the fourth group of capitals and the con¬ 
trolling stroke of the same. In this controlling stroke the long 
down stroke is a compound curve. The final up stroke in the Y is 
also a compound curve and does not extend as high as the first 
part of the letter. The v is like the last part of the w and like the 
part of the b below the crossing of the loop. The tick stroke in v 
and the connecting stroke in the small letters should not be 
slighted. Pupils are often inclined to omit final strokes, and this 
should be guarded against. The $ and ^ signs require close at¬ 
tention. Their relative sizes should be noted and the slant must 
be observed. Details like making the cross lines in x straight 


and parallel are important enough to deserve extra care. Special 
attention must be given to the e when it follows v, w or b, to 
keep from making it too high. The slant of the oval of the a is 
the same as the cross stroke of the x. The slant of the straight 
down stroke in the a is the same as the straight down stroke in 
the x. No vertical space is left between the single letters or 
words. All the small letters in this lesson are of even height. No 
part of the lesson extends below the writing line. Uniformity, 
light lines, accurate spacing, proper heading and pleasing page 
effect must be given full consideration. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 12 

The U is the second capital in the fourth group and has the the greater part of its length with a decided curve near the bottom 
same controlling stroke as the V. The long up stroke is a plain which extends below the line. The second part is not as high as 
right curve and the final down stroke is practically straight for the first. In the u all the up strokes are right curves, parallel 



136 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



and of the same length, and the two down strokes are straight, 
parallel and of even length. The beginning stroke of the u com¬ 
mences on the writing line and the final up stroke extends as 
high as the letter. This should be especially noted. The stroke 
between the u and n is a compound curve. Uniformity in spacing 
and in the height of all parts of the small letters is very important. 
The 6 and the last stroke in the 4 extend higher and the 9 lower 
than the other numerals. No vertical spaces are left between the 


single letters or between the n and un. The lesson should be cor¬ 
rectly distributed over the line and not crowded together at one 
end. No more than the work in the copy hould be written on the 
line. It should be noted that the $ and $ signs and all the 
numerals extend higher than the u and n. The columns made by 
the successive lines should be straight down the page. The lines 
must all be light. 





GRADE II, BOOK II 


Lesson 13 



The Y is the third and last capital in the fourth group. To the 
top of the second part it is exactly like the U. The long down 
stroke extending into the loop is straight. The loop is the same 
size as the lower loops in q, Z, z, y, g and J, j. The crossing of 
the loop is at the writing line. The y is the same form as the h 
inverted. The loops of Y and y are alike. The y begins on the 
writing line and ends at the height of the first part. The con¬ 
necting stroke between the m and y is a compound curve. The k 
is as high as the first part of Y. The unclosed oval in the second 
part of the k needs special attention, and also the second down 


stroke, which is straight. The connecting stroke between the e 
and y is a compound curve. It is important to make all the loops 
below the line uniform and make the tops of the y’s, m, e and the 
second part of k of even height. The k is narrower at the bottom 
between the two straight down strokes than the h at the corre¬ 
sponding point. No vertical spaces are left between the single 
letters or between the y and m, or between the my and key. This 
should be noted. Spacing is one of the most abused elements in 
writing. The lesson should be so spaced that it will be cortectly 
distributed over the line. The lines must be light. 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


137 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 14 



PP 



The T is the first capital of the fifth group which includes the 
T, F and D. The stem is made first and then the cap. The tail 
of the cap is a horizontal stroke, but it may slant downward 
slightly at the right end. The point where the final part of the 
stem begins is important. The t is not as high as the capital and 
is the same height as the d and p. The straight down stroke of 
the t and the initial up stroke are joined at the height of the i and 
other minimum letters. If* the part above this point were cut off 
the remaining part would be the i. The final stroke should ex¬ 
tend to the height of the minimum small letters. The cross stroke 
is straigh tand horizontal. The tick strokes in the o’s and the w 


should have special attention. Position, uniformity in size, slant 
and spacing and fine line quality should not be overlooked at any 
time. The long down stroke to the writing line, is the controlling 
stroke of this group of capitals, comprising the T, F and D, and 
also of the following group, comprising the P, B and R. It should 
be learned with special thoroughness. This long stem stroke is a 
left curve in the upper half, and a right curve in the lower half, 
being a compound curve. No vertical inter-word spaces are left. 
No part of this lesson extends below the line. Light lines must be 
insisted upon. 




GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 15 



The F is the second capital in the fifth group and is the same 
form as the T with the extension of the first stroke across the 
stem, and the tick stroke, which should be straight, very short 
and close to the stem. The upper loop of the f is the same as the 


loop in the h and k and the lower loop is the same as the loop in q. 
The upper loop crossing is at the height of the minimum letters 
and the lower loop closes at the writing line. If the loops were cut 
off at the crossing and close, the remaining part would be i. The 








138 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


x and r require special attention to make the straight down 
stroke of the x on the correct slant, the up stroke for the cross 
straight and parallel with the two other up strokes; and to make 
the r a little higher than the u with the slightly retraced top, 
the correct shoulder and the straight down stroke. The long 
straight down stroke in the f needs very close consideration. It is 


a common error to make the lower loop too wide, due to curving 
the down stroke below the line, and this loop is often made vertical 
or even slanted backward. The proper distribution of the letters 
throughout the line must be carefully worked out. Even spacing 
is of the greatest importance. The final part of the r is the same 
form as the final part of the u. Light lines must be insisted on. 



GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 16 




The D is the third and last capital of the fifth group. The con¬ 
trolling stroke is the same as in T and F. The loop at the line is 
the same as in Q and L. The space between the controlling stroke 
and the long up stroke is narrow. The turn at the top is well 
rounded. The part of the d below the crossing of the loop is the 
same form as a. The loop is shorter and narrower than in the 
h, k, f, b and 1. The down stroke in the loop of the d is straight, 
except in the final d (used only at ends of words) which is 
curved and the final up stroke is omitted. The oval in the d is 
slanted more than the oval in o. The c and o slant the same. The 
words odd and cod should be given very close attention. The 
figures must be made with great care for accuracy. Fine lines 


(made with a well pointed pencil), correct position, uniformity 
and good arrangement must be emphasized. The spaces between 
the single d’s and the words are wide enough to indicate the 
omissions of the introductory strokes from the d ovals. The 
pupil should become more and more critical of his own work and 
should be questioned frequently to test his powers of observation. 
While he should imitate the copy as perfectly as possible he 
should at the same time form clear mental pictures of the forms 
he is imitating. The difference between following an outline in a 
merely mechanical way and following it thoughtfully must be 
understood and impressed upon the pupil. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 17 


The P is the first capital m the sixth group which consists of 
the P, B and R. The controlling stroke in this group is the first 
down stroke of the three letters, and is the same as in the fifth 
group. The turn at the bottom of the P must be well rounded and 
the long up stroke must be parallel with the first down stroke in 


order to make the main body of the letter of the same width 
throughout. The space between the controlling stroke and the 
downward curve of the final stroke is narrow, less than one-third 
as wide as the main body of the letter. The lower loop of the p 
is the same size as the loop in the d. The lower loop and the final 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


139 



oval of the p are the same as the corresponding parts in the d, 
but inverted. The p extends as high above the line as the t and 
d, but not as high as the capital. Insist on good position, fine lines 
and uniformity as well as accuracy. The two single p’s illus¬ 
trate the effect on spacing when final strokes are omitted. The 
final stroke may be put on the p, which would take up this space 


in the usual way. The long down stroke in the p is straight. 
Pupils should be required to compare their work closely with the 
copy to discover any errors in spacing, height, joinings of parts or 
other details. Every down stroke in the copy must rest on the 
line, except long down strokes of the p’s. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 


Lesson 18 



The B is the second letter in the sixth group of capitals and uses 
the same controlling stroke as the P and R. The B is the same 
form as the P to the point where the little loop is to be made. The 
little loop is placed across the controlling stroke and extends 
downward at the right end. The final part is well rounded and 
ends much like the T. In the b the loop is as high as the capital. 
The down stroke of the loop in the b is a straight line. The part 
of the b below the crossing of the loop is the same form as the v. 
Special attention must be given to the tick stroke at the top of 
the second part of the b, and to the joining stroke between the b 
and e. The e must not be higher or lower than the second part 


of the b. The final up strokes of the e’s and the x must not be 
slighted. Good page effect must be kept in mind. Pupils should 
be guided into the practice of thinking critically about the work 
they are doing. Simple questions may be asked at any time 
about vaidous details to test the pupil’s real understanding. With¬ 
out referring to the book let him state how the B and b compare 
in height; how the spaces in the B at the right and left of the 
stem compare in width; how the b may be transformed into a v; 
how the b is finished. The more definitely the pupil learns to 
visualize these forms the more rapid will be his progress He 
must also make all lines light by conscious effort. 




140 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 19 



The R is the third and last letter in the sixth group which uses 
the sixth controlling stroke. The letter is the same form as the 
B to the completion of the small loop. The final stroke is the 
same as the final stroke of the K. The r needs particular atten¬ 
tion. This letter is one of two forming the class of medial letters. 
The other medial letter is the s. These two letters extend a little 
higher than the regular minimum letters to give Them perfect pro¬ 
portions. The r is retraced slightly at the top, after which a short 
oblique line is made, then the shoulder, which should be a short 
turn, and then a straight stroke down to the line on the slant 
with all straight down strokes. The tick stroke on the o and the 


connecting stroke between the o and r require special attention. 
Fine line quality is always important. This style of r should be 
insisted upon in all the pupil’s writing. Another style sometimes 
used, made by retracing the down stroke and making a dot or tick 
stroke at the top should not be used because it has often been 
confused with the o and v, when poorly made. This lesson offers 
many details concerning which pupils may be questioned to test 
their knowledge and ability to observe; such as the spacing be¬ 
tween letters and between words; the relative height of the r’s and 
the other letters; the straight down strokes; the, comparative 
slants of o and a. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 



The S is the first capital letter in the seventh group of capitals, 
and uses the seventh controlling stroke. The loop in the top part 
of the S extends half the length of the letter. The long stem 
stroke is practically the same as the corresponding stroke in the 
T, but does not have as much slant because the loop in the S must 
have the general slant of all letters. The s belongs to the group 
of small letters called medial letters, which includes only the s and 


r. These two are slightly higher than the regular minimum small 
letters. The s has a slight retrace at the top which is followed by 
a compound curve with a well rounded curve at the bottom. This 
stroke ends on the first up stroke and is helped if a slight dot is 
made. The final up stroke must be made the height of the mini¬ 
mum letters. Note the tick stroke on the w. In this lesson the 
questions should be directed principally to cover the S and s. No 





THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


141 


stroke in the lesson extends below the writing line. The spacing 
must be such as to distribute the work properly throughout the 
full line. The full page effect must be pleasing. This requires 


the heading to be well written; the margins to be uniform ; the 
lines to be light; the columns to be straight. There must be no 
evidences of carelessness on the final page. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 21 



The G is the second capital of the seventh group. The con¬ 
trolling stroke is broken in the G. The loop is one part and the 
stem from the point at the right of the loop the other part. The 
loop is half the length of the letter, as in the S. The final stroke 
is like the corresponding part of the S. In the g the oval and the 
straight down stroke following it and extending to the line are the 
same as in the a, q and d. The loop in the g is the same as in 
the Y and y. The crossing of the loop is at the line. The tick 
stroke in the o must be noted. The spacing throughout the line 
must be given minute care. The uniformity of height and slant 
must also be carefully observed. Position at the desk must not be 
slighted. Fine line quality is always important. The completed 



page must present a pleasing appearance. The heading must be 
accurate. The g, being an oval letter, has no introductory stroke 
when used alone or at the beginning of a word. The g oval and 
the o oval have different slants. The slant of the o is the same 
as the long down stroke in the g. If the down stroke in the g 
oval is omitted the remaining part of the letter makes a j, except 
the dot. The lesson must be spaced carefully to make it fill a 
line. The pupil should be required to make frequent comparisons 
between his work and the copy, in search of details, and to correct 
errors. The work done by the pupil should be more than mere 
copying. He should study the lessons. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 22 


The L is the third and last capital of the seventh group. The 
loop is the same as in the S and G and is half the length of the 
letter. The long down stroke is the same form as the controlling 
strokes in the fifth and sixth groups. The loop at the bottom is 


the same as in the Q and D. The cross stroke at the bottom of 
the L touches the line after forming the loop. The down stroke 
in the 1 is straight. The small letter is the same height as the 
capital. The part of the 1 below the crossing of the loop is the 






142 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 







6<f 


same form as the i. The final up stroke must extend as high as 
the minimum letters. The tick strokes in the o’s and in the w need 
special attention, and special care must also be given to the second 
part of the k to make the small oval horizontal and not to close it. 
The l’s and k must have proper final up strokes. The e, in well, 
must not be higher than the w. More and more emphasis must be 
put upon the necessity of the pupil’s studying the details of the 
copy from lesson to lesson. While imitating the forms, he should 


be acquiring distinct concepts of them. He should be tested re¬ 
peatedly to see how definitely the forms have taken shape in his 
mind. He should be required to answer questions covering the 
elements of pleasing page effect—the heading, the margins, the 
spacing, the line quality, the columns. No work should be given 
a passing grade that does not give satisfactory evidence on the 
face of it that the lesson has been thought out and worked out 
with great care. 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 23 




% 

The I is one of the two letters belonging to the eighth and last 
group of capitals. The other is the J. In the I the initial up 
stroke must be given special attention to make sure that it has 
the correct slant. The turn at the top is narrow and the long 
down stroke has very little curve for most of its length. The 
final stroke is the same as in T, S and G. No part of the I ex¬ 
tends below the line. The upper loop must slant toward the right 
the same as all other letters. In the i both the up strokes are 
alike in slant, curvature and length. It is very important that 
the final up strokes be put on letters as required. Many pupils 
neglect them and thus mar their letters. The c should be given 
special attention. The 6 and 9 must be given due care. The fine 


line quailty should not be overlooked. Position is always an im¬ 
portant consideration. The top of the c has a distinct hook and 
dot, which should always be made with care. The dots above the 
i’s are in direct line with the straight down strokes. There are 
no retraces in the i or n. All the final strokes extend to the 
height of the minimum letters. The difference between the slants 
of the 6 and 9 ovals should be noted. Each of these numerals has 
a long straight stroke. The pupil should be questioned as closely 
as time permits on the details throughout the lesson. He should 
be required to study the details and compare his work with the 
copy frequently. 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


143 


GRADE II, BOOK II 
Lesson 24 



The J is the last letter in the eighth group and the only capital 
that begins below the writing line. It must be begun in this way 
to make it possible to give the letter the correct proportions. Both 
the loops cross at the writing line and at the same point. The 
upper loop is twice as wide as the lower loop, and the lower loop 
is about two-thirds as long as the upper loop. The lower loop is a 
little narrower than the loop of the I. The loop in the j is the 
same form as the loop in the J. The long down strokes in both 
the capital and small forms of this letter are straight. Very great 
care must be exercised to give the J the correct slant. It is an 
easy matter to slant the top part toward the left instead of 


toward the right as it must be to be correct. Spacing, uniformity 
and fine lines must be emphasized continually. The pupil should 
be asked to state how many different heights of letters (3) are 
used in this lesson; how much of the r extends higher than the 
a; whether the j extends higher than the a, or to the same height; 
whether or not the loops in the J’s, j’s and f are alike in width 
and length; whether or not the o, in of, has an introductory 
stroke; how the upper and lower loops in the J compare in length 
and width; how the slants of the o and a oval compare; how the 
J and f compare in height. Such questions will test the pupil’s 
knowledge aside from his ability to merely imitate. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 1 

0 0 Cy (3 (nJy / 3 U 6 


Grades I, II and III are classified as the pre-movement grades 
because no arm movement is taught in these grades. The work of 
these grades is to teach position and form. In this grade the re¬ 
sponsibility of form-building is particularly heavy because with 
the coming of the next (4th) grade the arm movement will be 


undertaken and the pupil’s attention will be required so largely 
for that phase of work that he will make but little progress in 
improving his concepts of form for a time. Pupils in Garde III 
are of such development and advancement that they are able to 
understand and make letter forms with extraordinary accuracy 



144 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


and the only limitation of their accomplishment in this direction 
will usually be the teacher’s inability to give them better ex¬ 
planations and finer criticisms. 

The heading should now be written with great accuracy in 
every particular. Details of form, spacing, height, slant, punc¬ 
tuation and line quality must be insisted upon to the last degree. 
The lesson itself must be analyzed to the smallest details. The 
perfect matching of the curvature on the two sides of O, capital 
and small; the exactness in closing the O at the top; the size and 
position of the final oval of O; the position and size of the loop at 
the beginning of the C; the uniformity of the O and C; the spacing 
between the capitals; the spacing between the last C and the 
following c; the minute dot at the beginning of the c; the slight 
curve in the long down stroke of the c; the slant of the c; the slant 
and the proportion of width to length of the o; the tick stroke at 
the top of the o; the connecting stroke (compound curve) between 
the o and a: the slant of the a oval (more than that of the o and 
c) ; the straight down stroke in the a; the straight down stroke in 
the 1; the final up stroke in the 1; the space following the word 
coal, all these must be noted with the most critical attention. The 
same study must be made of the word oil and of the numerals of 
the lesson. 

The full page must be considered. All irregularities must be 
corrected. The work must be uniform in size, slant and spacing. 
The lines must be of fine quality. The spacing down the page 
after the full page has been written should be even. Pupils must 
be taught to see every detail. They must not be permitted merely 
to copy letters or words, but must copy details of form structure. 
Every letter the pupil makes must be measured by the copy, and 
its errors, if it has any, discovered, before they can be eliminated 
and improvement made. Even such conspicuous features as the 
two forms and slants of ovals as shown in the o and a in the 
word coal, are usually not see by pupils until pointed out. It 


should be pointed out that the oval in a slants like up strokes 
and the second down stroke in a slants like most of the down 
strokes. The oval in the o slants like the straight down strokes of 
most letters. The c and o slant alike. The numerals are higher 
than the c, o, a and i in the lesson and the final stroke in 4 is 
higher than the 1, 2, 3 and 5. No stroke in this lesson extends 
below the writing line. The l’s are of even height with the O’s and 
C’s. Pupils who are actually taught to find and study and copy 
details will soon make astonishing progress and their work will 
be remarkably free from scribbling. But pupils who are per¬ 
mitted to struggle along unaided will overlook all important de¬ 
tails and soon develop wretched forms of their own creation and 
drift into the abyss of the scrawler. Such pupils are later de¬ 
clared to be naturally poor writers, but are merely the victims 
of inefficient teaching. A good series of copies pedagogically ar¬ 
ranged are of little value to a pupil unless he learns to see what 
they embody and to visualize these forms in his mind and repro¬ 
duce them on paper. It is the right doing that puts the O. Iv. on 
teaching, and right doing can come only from right thinking. Right 
thinking requires training, and training implies teaching. It is 
not teaching to tell a pupil to make the work like it is in the 
book. Teaching requires that the pupil be trained to see details. 
The pupil’s efforts must be examined and analyzed and criticised 
and the ways of improvement clearly pointed out to him. Under 
such teaching the average pupil will soon be producing letter 
forms that embody many of the elements of perfection. No arm 
movement should be taught in this grade except to exceptional 
pupils who merit a grade of 95% or more on each lesson in book 
III, and thus are permitted to work ahead of the schedule, and 
who for this reason will complete book III before the end of the 
term. Such pupils should be started in book IY as soon as they 
complete book III. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 2 

The details of position should be carefully noted with each carelessness. Certainty should be made that in each case both 

pupil, giving special attention to pupil known to be inclined to arms are placed as correctly on the desk as the size and shape of 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


145 




cyyyyyyy P P 


the desk will permit. The position of the fingers holding the 
pencil or pen should be checked with the specifications given 
under the subject of Position. Pupils should not be permitted to 
slouch in their seats. 

Special attention should be given to the heading, to see that it 
is written with the correct letter forms and with due considera¬ 
tion to the spacing and punctuation. No page should ever be 
considered well enough done if the heading is scribbled. If the 
pupil cannot otherwise be brought to doing good enough work on 
the heading he should be required to write a page or several 
pages of only the heading, writing it on every line, and should be 
required to bring it up to a satisfactory standard before he is per¬ 
mitted to work on the lesson. 

In the lesson note the following details: 

The E begins with a plain curve; the upper part of the E is 
about half as long as the lower part; the minute loop in E slants 
downward toward the right; a line drawn along the backs of the 
two parts of the E is on the slant of all the letters; the E’s and the 
A’s and the h are of even height; the A is closed at the top; it 
is much narrower in the turn at the bottom than the E; the a in 
an and the c in came, being oval letters at beginning of words, do 
not have introductory strokes; the last letters in the three words 
have final strokes made upward; the c does not have a loop; the 
second part of h and all the other small letters are of even height, 
and this uniformity should be made a very exact requirement; the 
spacing should be accurate and should give the copy sufficient 
length to reach across the page; the long cross strokes in the ^ 
signs should stand on the line; all down strokes in the small let¬ 
ters except in the c’s and o and the first down strokes in the a’s 
should be made as nearly straight as possible. 

The page work should show care in the arrangement of every 
part. The heading should match with the lesson work. The 


spacing of the work on the successive lines should be even, making 
the same parts of the copy come in even columns. This accuracy 
is the very soul of the work in the first three grades and all ir¬ 
regularities should be discouraged. Pupils in Grade III are able 
to do work of astonishing accuracy if brought to realize what can 
be done and what their own capabilities are. 

Pupils must be trained wisely. It is never safe to leave them 
for a very long time to their own devices. The progress of the 
race might be lost in a generation if the element of training were 
wholly eliminated. Teachers must be students, critics, observers. 
They must be able to point out to their pupils a wealth of de¬ 
tails that have come to them, if at all, through experience as 
critics and observers. Teachers who do not understand details of 
form cannot expect to be successful in teaching form to these 
grades. But their more mature minds will enable them to under¬ 
stand these details quickly, if they apply themselves to their 
study, and they will then be able to direct their pupils with 
greater safety. 

Pupils in this grade may be required to point out many de¬ 
tails themselves, by careful examination of the copy, but they 
should always be given final statements by the teacher as to the 
accuracy of their observations. A pupil may be asked to show the 
difference between the a and o ovals, and show whether the c 
most resembles the o or a oval, but when he has finished the 
recitation he should be told definitely whether he is right or 
wrong, and if he is wrong he should be specifically corrected. 
Indefiniteness is disastrous and should never be allowed to pass 
as satisfactory. The pupil should be told definitely that he is 
right, or that he is wrong. This spirit of definiteness on the 
part of the teacher will beget a like spirit in the pupil and 
in consequence of this attitude success will be assured. 

The materials must never be neglected. If pencils are used they 



146 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


must have points that will produce fine, smooth, even lines. If 
pens and ink are used they must be of a quality that is adequate 
to the purpose in hand. If a good penman cannot write well with 
poor materials (and he cannot) how can a beginner be ex¬ 
pected to do so? Writing must be made a serious undertaking, not 


a makeshift. Something definite should be undertaken and accom¬ 
plished in each recitation and the recitations should be as regular 
from day to day as are those of any other subjects. No arm move¬ 
ment should be taught in this grade except in cases mentioned at 
the end of the intructions for lesson 1. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 


Lesson 3 



/ryaymyy /riAynyy /rvix^ny 



First make a complete and accurate check of all details of 
position. See that all pencils point between the elbows and 
shoulders, and that the first joints of the first fingers are not bent 
downward. Each pupil’s body must be kept erect. Both arms 
must rest on the desk. 

The headings must be correctly written, which means that the 
styles of letters must be correct and that the spacing, punctuation 
and arrangement must be right. If the heading shows careless¬ 
ness it should be rewritten until it is brought up to the proper 
standard. 


The first parts of the N’s must be of eyen height and the 
second parts, slightly lower than the first, must be of even height. 
All the small letters are of one height and all the down strokes 
in the small letters, except the first down stroke in a, are straight. 
Each successive word begins directly beneath the terminating 
point of the preceding word. The many rounded top joinings and 
the straight down strokes are of the greatest importance in this 
lesson. Each pupil’s work should be compared letter by letter with 
the copy and the errors pointed out. 




GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 4 


Require each pupil to assume the proper writing position, noting 
especially that they are holding their bodies erect and that the 
pencils point between the elbows and shoulders. Be certain that 


no excessive gripping of the pencils is practiced. Call attention 
to the necessity of writing correct headings and see that details 
are not overlooked. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


147 


In the M the first two parts are the same in height and spacing 
as the corresponding parts in the N. The third part of M is 
shorter than the second, making a gradual decrease in height for 
the three parts. The small letters all extend to the same height 
and only the y extends below the line. All down strokes in the 
small letters (except the first in a) are straight. The spacing 


should be such as to make the copy fill a line. No vertical space 
is left between words. Pencils should be properly pointed for 
making fine lines. The second down stroke in a must be given 
special attention. Full page effect is always important and uni¬ 
formity of work on all successive lines must be insisted upon. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 5 



First insist upon good positions. Note the positions of the 
pencils (pointing between the elbows and shoulders). See that 
all bodies are erect. Emphasize details of the heading. See that 
no pupil is using an incorrect style of letter in the heading. Check 
the spacing and punctuation. In the lesson work many new details 
are included. The two part of the H’s and the h’s and l’s are all 
of even height. The d and t are slightly shorter and both the 
same height. The d is the “final” form and is the only small 


letter that is regularly finished with a down stroke. All the down 
strokes in the small letters, except those in the d and o, should be 
straight. Each of the numerals has a straight stroke. The straight 
strokes in the $ sign are the same length as the t and d. The oval 
in the d slants like that of a and not like the o. The tick stroke in 
the w must be given special attention. Uniformity should always 
be strongly emphasized. 



GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 6 


cm/ u/ 






Commence by making certain that all pupils have assumed cor¬ 
rect positions. Note that all pencils point between the elbows 
and shoulders. See that all bodies are erect and remain so. Call 
attention to the details of the heading and permit no pupil to 
commence on the lesson until he has made a good heading. In 


the lesson the two parts of the K’s and the loops in the k’s and the 
1 are all of even height. See that they are made so. The minute 
loop connecting the two parts of the K is at the middle of the 
letter and is inclined upward toward the left. The first down 
strokes in the a’s and the down strokes in the o’s and the c and 



148 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


the small oval in the k’s are curved, but all other down strokes is placed horizontally and is not closed. The second part of k is 
in the small letters are straight. The r is slightly higher than the same height as minimum letters. See that all final up strokes 
the regular minimum, letters. The oval in the second part of k are put on. Among the numerals watch the 8 especially. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 7 



Assure yourself that all details of position are correct through¬ 
out the class. Give all needed attention to the heading. Explain 
that this lesson takes up the third controlling stroke, in which the 
long down stroke is a full right curve, instead of being practically 
straight as in the preceding group (N, M, H, K). The Q’s rest 
on the writing line at two points and the loop at the bottom lies 
flat on the line. The upper part of the q’s are the same form as 
the a. The upper part of the z is the same form as the first part 


of n or m or the last part of h. The three loops below the line 
are all of the same length and width. All lower loops close at the 
writing line. The r is slightly higher than the e’s and other 
minimum letters. The 6 is higher than the other numerals and 
the 7 and 9 extend below the line. Vertical spaces are left be¬ 
tween the words because the introductory strokes are omitted from 
oval letters. The copy should be spaced to fill the line as shown. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 8 





See that all requirements of good position are observed, and 
commence with careful work on the heading. In the lesson the 
upper part of the Z is the same form as the corresponding part 
of the Q, except that the loop at the writing line is slightly smaller 
than in Q and is slightly upright instead of lying flat on the line 


as in the Q. The loops below the line in the Z’s and in the z’s are 
alike in width and length. The upper parts of the z’s are like the 
first parts of n and m. The many straight down strokes should 
be carefully noted. The b is the same height as the Z’s. The tick 
stroke in the b must be made distinct. The clear difference in 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


149 


the slant of the a and o ovals must be observed. A vertical space 
is left between the words in and a but not between the other 
words. The difference is due to the omission of the introductory 


stroke in the a. The spacing must be such as to distribute the 
copy properly over the full line. 



GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 9 



axny yyy o-yis ay 



Call attention to the position and note particularly the position 
of the pnecils. See that the first joint of the first finger is not 
bent downward. Start with the usual heading and see that each 
pupil has made a good heading before commencing on the lesson. 
In the X’s the first stroke is the regular controlling stroke of this 
group. The second part of the capital is the same height as the 
first and the two strokes touch at the middle. Be sure that the 
final stroke of X is put on. It should be noted that the a’s and 


the o, because used alone or at the beginning of words, do not 
have introductory strokes. The final up strokes should be given 
special consideration. The b is the same height as the Z’s. In the 
x’s the first part is the same form as the final parts of n, m and 
h, and the cross strokes are made upward and slanted the same 
as the up strokes of the first part. The tick strokes in the o’s 
and b must not be overlooked. Uniformity in height and spacing 
must be insisted on. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 10 

yyy-y aJJy' yx/yUs / P 


Commence with emphasis on position and pencil holding. Have 
the heading correctly written and explain details of the W. In the 
W’s the first and second parts are of even height and the third 
part is slightly lower. The first stroke is the regular controlling 
stroke of this group. All strokes in the W are curved and there 
are three pointed joinings in the letter. Round joinings and loops 
should never be made at these points. The intense curve at the 
top of the last stroke in W should not be overlooked. The l’s 


should be the same height as the first and second parts of the W. 
The tick strokes of the w’s and the strokes between the w’s and 
following e’s must be given special attention. All down strokes 
in the small letters of the lesson, except the first down stroke in 
the a, are straight. The final up strokes must all be put on. 
The spacing must be such as to distribute the copy correctly 
throughout the line. 



150 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 11 


aaianyy / P 




Give all necessary attention to position and see that the heading 
also receives proper consideration. The V in this lesson intro¬ 
duces the fourth controlling stroke. The long down stroke is a 
compound curve, but it has the appearance of being nearly 
straight. The turn at the bottom must be well rounded and the 
up stroke does not extend as high as the first part of the letter. 
The initial up strokes in the u’s and the w should be noted care¬ 
fully, and the sharp point at the top of each part of these two 


letters must be made distinct. The tick strokes in the v’s and the 
w require special consideration. All the down strokes in the small 
letters, except the first in the a’s, are straight. The r is slightly 
higher than the regular minimum letters. Uniformity in height 
and slant are very important, and the spacing must be accurate 
enough to make the copy fill the line as in the book. The final 
up strokes must be carefully made. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 12 

%{ %{ ayynayyhayra ay JayyJ!Jy P.$ P $ 


Commence with a reference to correct position and require the 
heading to be written with all possible care. The U’s have the 
same first strokes as the V’s and the second part should be slightly 
shorter than the first part. In the small letters every down stroke, 
except the first in the a’s is straight. The h and the l’s are the 
same height as the first part of the U. The t in nut is called the 
“final” t and should not have a cross. It has a left curve instead 
of a right curve, as the regular t, for the final up stroke. The 


clear distinction between the forms of n and u in the word nut 
should be carefully brought out. The difference is in the up 
strokes, as the down strokes are alike in the two letters. The 
spacing, both between the letters in the words and between the 
words, should be carefully explained and insisted upon. The full 
page effect should be made important and the slightest trace of 
carelessness should be severely criticised. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


151 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 13 



123 


With this lesson pupils may be started in the use of pen and 
ink, if there seems to be sufficient time to give the necessary help 
to each individual. It will not be a loss in any way to continue 
using pencils but if teachers have sufficient time it will be found 
a gain later in Grade IY to have had the pupils accustomed to 
using pens and ink in the last half of the year in Grade III. If 
ink is used special attention must be given to holding the pens 
very lightly and making the lines light. It is the gripping of the 


holder that causes heavy lines, if the proper pens are used. Light 
lines must be insisted upon when ink is used. The Y’s to the top 
of the second part are the same form as the U’s. The loops below 
the line in the Y’s and y’s are exactly alike. The lower part of 
the b is the same form as the v. All down strokes in the small 
letters of this lesson, except in the o’s, are straight. Be sure the 
final up strokes in the y’s are made accurately. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 14 



Give due consideration to the position and the heading. The T 
introduces the fifth controlling stroke. Special care must be used 
to make sufficient curve at the top of the stem and to give the 
stem the proper slant. A broad turn must be made at the bottom 
and the cross stroke finishing the stem must be considered im¬ 
portant. The top of the T is made last, as in the t. The top 
stroke and the stem must not conflict. The stem must be made 
short enough so that when the top is put on the completed letter 


will be the height of other capitals. The stems of the T and the t 
are the same height. All the down strokes in the small letters of 
this lesson, except the one in the o, are straight. The final up 
strokes must all be put on. The spacing must be accurate and the 
uniformity in height and slant must be given full consideration. 
The crosses on the t’s must be straight and short. The lesson must 
be written to make a full line. Pupils using pens must make fine 
lines. 



152 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE III, BOOK III 


Lesson 15 



Call proper attention to the position and heading. Pupils who 
are using pens must be particularly careful to make very light 
lines. The stem of the F is the same as in the T to the point 
where the cross stroke begins. The tick stroke at the end of the 
cross stroke must be short and straight and close to the stem. 
The top stroke is the same as in the T. The t is the height of 
the stem in F and the f’s are as high as the completed F’s. The 
lower loops in the f’s are the same form as the loop in q. All 


down strokes in the small letters of this lesson, except in the o’s, 
are straight. The final up strokes must be given the necessary con¬ 
sideration. The spacing must be accurate. All lines must be of 
fine quality. The r’s are a little higher than the regular minimum 
letters. The enclosed parts of the upper and lower loops in the 
f’s are the same both in length and width. Pleasing full page 
effect is important. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 


Lesson 16 



Begin with proper attention to position and the heading. The 
beginning stroke in the D is the same as the corresponding strokes 
in T and F. The loop at the bottom of the stem is the same as 
in the Q and must lie flat on the writing line. The body of the D 
toward the right of the stem is narrow and the top turn is 
broad. The introductory strokes are omitted from the d, a and g 
because these are oval small letters used as initial letters, which 
never have introductory strokes. The d in do and the first d in 


deed have straight down strokes in the loops, but the d in good 
and the last d in deed have curved down strokes in the loops be¬ 
cause these are final d’s. Final d does not have a final up stroke 
but all other final letters must have final up strokes. All down 
strokes in the small letters of this lesson are curved except six 
(second in two d’s, one each in a and g and two in the e’s). Give 
special attention to the 8. Extend the 9 below the line. Pupils 
using pen and ink must make all lines fine. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


153 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 17 





ay 



USlo^ . 


The position and heading must receive first attention. The P 
belongs to the sixth group but has the same controlling stroke 
as the letters of the fifth group (T, F, D). The turn at the bottom 
of the stem in the P is the same as the corresponding part in the 
T and F. The long up stroke is parallel with the stem and a 
broad turn is made at the top. The space between the stem and 
the second down stroke is narrow and the finishing stroke turns 
slightly upward. The p’s and the d are of even height and as 
high as the stem in the P. The oval in the p is the same form as 


the oval in the a inverted, and the oval and lower loop in the p 
are the same as the oval and loop in the d inverted. The final 
d is used in the word and. Final up strokes must be made on all 
final letters except the final d. The 6 and the second stroke in 
the 4 are higher than the other numerals and the 7 extends below 
the line. Thirteen straight down strokes are used in the small let¬ 
ters of this lesson. Pupils using pens must be sure to make fine 
lines. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 


Lesson 18 



Begin by checking up details of position. Be sure that pupils 
who are using pens hold them lightly enough to make fine lines. 
See that the heading is properly written. The B is the same 
form as the P to the point that makes the lower part of the minute 
loop. The minute loop slants downward toward the right and 
stands across the stem. The b’s are the same height as the B’s. 
The lower parts of the b’s are the same form as the v. The oval 
and the top part of the second down stroke in the g are the same 


as the corresponding parts in the a. The tick strokes in the b’s 
must be given special attention and the difference between the con¬ 
necting strokes between b and i and in b and e must be noted. 
In the small letters all the down strokes, except the first in the 
a’s and g, are straight. The final strokes must not be neglected. 
The 8 needs special attention. The 9 extends below the line. The 
spacing must be accurate throughout the line. 




154 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 19 




(ruA/ ociAy /nx^zA/ 



Give the necessary attention to the position and heading and 
note especially that pupils using pens hold them lightly and make 
fine lines. The R is the same form as the B to the point that 
completes the minute loop. The r’s should have special atten¬ 
tion. They are made slightly higher than the other small letters 
of this lesson. The o and c have no introductory strokes, since 
they are oval letters used at the beginning of words. Final up 
strokes must have special attention. The spacing must be ac¬ 


curate both between the letters in the words and between the 
words. All down strokes in the small letters, except the first 
down strokes in the a’s and the down stroke in the o, must be 
straight. Light lines must be insisted upon for all pupils. Pleas¬ 
ing page effect is very important and depends largely upon making 
the successive lines uniform in size and spacing. Strict criticism 
should be made of all errors and each pupil should be required to 
compare his work carefully with the copy, letter by letter. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 20 


n 


*4 







Due consideration should be given to the position and the 
heading. Line quality must be considered highly important, 
especially with pupils using pens. The S is the first capital taken 
up that commences with an up stroke. The initial up stroke of 
S is curved greatly. The loop at the top of the letter is half the 
length of the letter. The long down stroke is a left curve in the 
upper half (in the loop) and a right curve below the loop. The S 
touches the writing line at two points. The s has a retrace at the 
top and a down stroke much the same as the S. The s is higher 


than the minimum letters. It has a rounded bottom, and is com¬ 
prised wholly of curves. In this lesson all the down strokes in 
the small letters, except in the s’s and in the second part of the p, 
are straight. The h and 1 are the same height as the S. The t’s 
and the p are shorter than the 1, h and S. Each word is finished 
with an up stroke. The spacing requires constant care. Each line 
should be correctly filled. The completed page should be pleasing 
because of its uniformity. 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


155 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 21 



Note carefully the position of all pupils. See that their pencils 
or pens point between their elbows and shoulders. Be certain 
that all pupils are making light lines. Watch the line quality 
especially in cases where pens are used. The initial up stroke and 
the loop at the top in the G are the same as the corresponding 
parts in the S. The second part of the G extends to half the 
height of the loop. This point should never have a loop and should 
never extend to the height of the top loop. The bottom of the 


G is the same as the S. The small letters in this lesson are all 
oval letters, and only the long down strokes in the g’s and the 
down stroke in the loop of the second d are straight. The final 
d is used in the word good, and does not have a final up stroke. 
Special attention should be given to the difference in the slant 
of the g and d ovals (which are the same) and the ovals of the 
o’s. The ovals in d and g are the same as in the a. The loops 
in the d’s are narrower and shorter than the loops as 1, b and h. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 22 




Give all due attention to the position and to the writing of 
the regular heading. The L has the same controlling stroke used 
in T, F, and D (though slightly longer than these) and in the S 
and G (modified in G). The loop at the top of the stem is the 
same as in S and G. The loop at the bottom of the stem is the 
same form as the corresponding loops in the Q and D. The L 
touches the writing line at two points. In the small letters of this 
lesson every down stroke, except the one in the s, is straight. The 


Ts, the h and the b are the same height as the L’s. The lower 
part of the b is like the last part of the w. Each word has a 
final up stroke. The tick strokes on w and b should not be 
slighted. All loop crossings (as in 1) are at the height of the i. 
Spacing must be carefully gauged so the lesson will fill the line 
without leaving conspicuous open spaces. All lines must be light, 
especially in cases where pupils use pens. 




156 


THE HAH ISAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 23 







12 S U 


Give proper consideration to the details of position and the 
heading. Be certain that all pupils are making light lines, espe¬ 
cially if using pens. The I needs special attention to give it the 
correct slant. It is a common error to make it too nearly ver¬ 
tical or even slanted toward the left. The bottom of the letter 
is the style used in the T and other letters. The letter commences 
on the writing line and the bottom of the stem also touches the 
lines. All down strokes in the small letters except two, are 
straight. Final up strokes must be put on all the words. The 


word it ends with the final t which does not have a cross and 
has a left curve instead of the right curve, as used in the regular 
t, for the final stroke. The lower loop and the final oval in the 
p are the same form as the loop and oval in the d, but inverted. 
The oval in the p is also like the oval in the a, but inverted. 
Spacing must have particular care. No long spaces should be 
left between words. The final stroke in the 4 is slightly higher 
than all the others in these numerals. 


GRADE III, BOOK III 
Lesson 24 



Note the positions of all pupils. See that their pencils or pens 
point between their elbows and shoulders. Be certain that there 
is no excessive gripping and that the lines show relaxation. The 
J is the only capital that begins below the writing line. This is 
necessary to make the crossing of the lower loop uniform with all 
other lower lopos; that is, at the writing line, and to place the 
crossing of the upper loop at the same point. The upper loop in 
the J is about twice as wide as the upper loop in the I. The lower 


loops in the J’s and j’s are alike in all respects. The y loop is also 
the same, but the p loop is narrower and shorter. There are only 
four curved down strokes in the small letters of this lesson. The 
dots of the i and j’s are in direct line with the straight down 
strokes. Each word has a final up stroke. Special care must be 
used not to make the j’s higher than the minimum letters. The o 
in our has no introductory stroke. The spacing must be given all 
possible care. 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


157 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 1 



In taking up P>ook IV in Grade IV the pupil is to commence 
learning tlie arm movement, and all the practice and study from 
this time forward revolves about the idea of this movement. Form 
must not be neglected, and if the pupil has not been properly 
trained in form in the preceding grades he must, of necessity, 
carry the double load of learning the arm movement and the forms 
of letters, together. 

The teacher must now be familiar with the elements of arm 
movement study and practice and be able to explain very clearly 
to pupils what is to be done. Actually showing pupils how to use 
the movement is the most effective way to teach it. The position 
and movement should be explained as given in chapters under these 
heads in this text. Each pupil should have a copy of Book IV, 
the proper kind of pen and paper, as explained under the head 
of Materials, and should commence on lesson 1, which is called 
the direct compact oval movement drill. The first five lessons 
in this book are called mere movement drills because they are 
intended merely to develop the arm movement. The ovals should 
he the form of the O and should be made in the direction in¬ 
dicated by the arrow. The lines must all be very light—lighter 
than shown in the print, where the fine quality was lost in en¬ 
graving. The finer the line quality the better, as this indicates 
high development of the writing nerves. Coarse lines, or lines 
made with a coarse pen cannot carry the development of the 
writing nerves very far and teachers and students should become 
greatly interested in producing fine lines in all practice work. 

The mm should roll lightly on the large part of the forearm 
where it rests on the desk, and the hand should glide lightly on 


the little finger as shown in the illustrations. The pen must be 
held so lightly that it will all but fall from the fingers. The 
slightest gripping will tend to make heavy down strokes and is to 
be remedied at once. The revolutions should be made with speed 
—from 150 to 200 per minute, and the drill should be made two 
ruled spaces of the paper in height. It will help greatly to count 
for the class in practicing this drill. The count should be from 
1 to 10 and should be repeated over and over again, without hesi¬ 
tating at the 10. The pupils should make a revolution for each 
count. The work should be made very compact. It is a good 
plan to make a “coat” across the full line and then turn the 
paper and go across again from the other end. The direction must 
always be the same and the movement must always progress 
from left to right across the page, but by turning the page for 
each coat the down strokes will be run with the up trokes and the 
up strokes with the down strokes, giving a better opportunity to 
watch the form carefully and fill in the minute white spaces. This 
drill should not be considered finished until it can be made with 
a uniform and rapid movement, which in Grade IV will mean that 
it cannot be fully finished at all. The finest penmen never en¬ 
tirely quit working on this drill. The lesson should be made four 
times on the page as shown in the model, leaving a blank space 
under the heading and between successive lines of the drill. 
Pupils should be made to understand that the purpose of this 
drill is to develop a movement with which to work and that the 
better the movement becomes as a result of the drill the more 
rapidly will they be able to progress through future lessons and 
the better will be the quality of work done. 






158 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


The O form of the ovals is very important since the practice will 
necessarily result in forming a movement habit and only the 
curves found in the O form are usable in making correct capitals. 
If the curves are not in the O form the capitals made later with 
the movement trained on an incorrect oval will all be misshapen 
and will require that the movement be retrained to enable it to 
make correct forms of capitals. 

The secret of mastering this drill is to work rapidly and con¬ 
tinuously and always with a light, springy movement, holding the 
pen without gripping. It must be remembered that if the down 
strokes are heavier than the up strokes it is a sure indication that 


there is too much gripping. If the lines show little shaky or wavy 
places the movement is too slow. Care must be used not to make 
the ovals too broad for the height and not slanted backward 
(toward the left). Every pupil should be watched to see that he 
does not permit his wrist or the fleshy part of his hand to sag 
down on the desk. Also the arm at the arm rest should never be 
allowed to slide on the desk and the arm should never be raised 
from the desk while practicing. The whole purpose of the drill 
is to develop the correct movement and this cannot be done unless 
every detail is correct. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 


Lesson 2 



This drill is called the oblique straight line drill. The position 
of the arm, hand and paper must be the same as for lesson 1. The 
muscles are made to stretch forward through two spaces of ruled 
paper and then are contracted again. This must be repeated in 
rapid succession and may be practiced to the count of 10 as ex¬ 
plained for lesson 1. Great care must be used not to use a side 
swing and the paper must never be turned to permit the hand to 
move sidewise. It is strictly a forward-backward movement. As 
the hand is pushed forward by the arm the muscles naturally 
cause it to swing slightly toward the right (right-handed persons) 
as explained under the chapter on Slant. Then as the muscles 
draw the arm backward the pull is more directly toward the body, 
so that slant is produced automatically. The slants will be dif¬ 
ferent with different persons, which is all right, but each person 
must practice until he develops a uniform slant. The purpose of 


the drill is really two-fold: 1. To enable a person to discover what 
his natural slant is. 2. To make that slant habitual and, there¬ 
fore, easy to follow in all his writing. 

It is more important that the slant he uniform than that the 
height be uniform, although the edges should be made as nearly 
uniform as possible. Nothing should ever be held at the edges 
to make them straight, as this is utterly wrong. The edges 
should be made as nearly straight as possible with an honest, 
rapid movement, but never by any artificial aid. The lines must 
be made as light as possible. Light lines should always be striven 
for as they indicate training of the writing nerves. A person 
who cannot make fine lines lacks much of having well trained 
writing nerves. In business fine lines may not be required but 
there the whole object of writing is a matter of securing product, 
while in school the whole purpose is a matter of training. It should 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


159 


always be remembered in teaching that process is more important 
than product. 

The paper may be turned in this drill as explained for number 
1 but there is not as much to be gained by this as in number 1. 
The successive coats may be made, however, whether the paper 
be turned or not, as this gives each coat time to dry thoroughly 
before adding the next. In this way there is less danger of 
wearing the surface off the paper. As explained for the pre¬ 
ceding lesson, the arm should never be allowed to slip on the 
desk and should never be lifted from the desk in arm movement 
practice. The purpose is to train the nerves and muscles in the 
skin at the arm rest, and if they are not made to stretch and 
work in the practice they can get no benefit. The little finger 
should rest lightly on the desk and should glide with the move¬ 
ments of the pen. 

In working out the full page of this and other mere movement 
drills the idea of fine effect should be kept constantly in mind. 
Four lines of this drill arranged like the model shown for lesson 
1, together with a well written heading, with all lines very fine 
and the work compact and uniform, make a very pleasing effect 
and is to be thought of as a picutre. Pride in making such a page 
must be aroused in the pupil. The best pages should be ex¬ 


hibited and the desire to excel should be quickened in all mem¬ 
bers of the class. 

Since the lines are made back and forth at the same place so 
many times it is a serious matter to get beginners to keep the 
work free from blurrs and blots. Such features can be overcome 
largely by allowing the hand to move toward the right more rap¬ 
idly, thus making each coat thinner and making more of them. 
When the proper touch has been developed and the pupil can make 
fine lines with ease these troubles will never occur. 

In all the mere movement drills special attention must be given 
to making the work compact, making all lines fine, using a rapid 
movement, keeping the movement going continuously for as long 
a time as possible and making the work of the correct form and 
at the same time uniform. The tendency to make heavy lines must 
be overcome quickly and it is worth very little in movement de¬ 
velopment to use a broken or spasmodic movement, stopping and 
starting frequently. The writing muscles must be kept in a 
relaxed condition and there must be sufficient speed to cause in¬ 
creased blood circulation in the arm. Such practice will promote 
mental concentration which, after all, is the foundation of all real 
work. It is better to work for five minutes continuously and 
rapidly than to work for ten or fifteen minutes with many in¬ 
terruptions. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 3 



After making certain that all pupils have assumed the correct 
writing position, have them write the usual heading correctly and 
commence work on the third mere movement drill. This is like 
lesson 1 in every way except that the movement is in the opposite 


direction, called the indirect oval, going in the direction indicated 
by the arrow. The indirect oval movement is used more or less 
in twenty-two capitals and in some of them it is the only form of 
movement used. It is, therefore, very important that this drill 



160 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


should be well learned. The elements of light line, uniformity, ends of the line should be used, and every effort should be made 
compactness and continuity of movement should be noted con- to produce a really fine quality of work. The lines made with the 
stantly and the form of the ovals should be like the O. The plan pen should be finer than those shown in the engraving, 
of inverting the paper and making successive coats from opposite 

GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 4 



Give the necessary attention to details of position, including 
the relation of the body to the desk; of the penholder in the hand; 
of the arms, and of the paper. Also emphasize the necessity of 
muscular relaxation. This drill is called the direct retraced link 
oval. It must be made in the direction indicated by the arrow, 
and two ruled spaces of the paper in height. Each oval should 
be retraced at least ten times and the lines should be made lighter 
than those in the engraving. If the materials used are of the 
right kind and the pens are held lightly enough the lines will be 
very fine. The movement should be rapid enough to produce 


smooth lines; that is, lines free from the irregularities that are 
caused by quivers in a slow movements. Counting 10, rapidly, 
for each oval is the best means for regulating the movement. The 
ovals should be the form of the O. The arm must be kept down on 
the desk, but the wrist and fleshy part of the hand must be lifted 
slightly above the desk to prevent friction. The skin muscles at 
the arm rest must stretch and contract as the forearm moves. 
The work on the page should be neat and properly arranged, as 
explained under the heading, Arranging the Work on the Page. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 5 



Open the writing period by calling attention to the details of 
position—of the body, arms, holding the penholder, and paper. 
Call attention to the importance of relaxing all muscles. Especially 
see that penholders point between the elbows and shoulders and 


that the wrist and fleshy part of the hand does not touch the 
desk. This drill is called the indirect retraced link oval. It must 
be made in the direction indicated by the arrow. The drill should 
be made two ruled spaces in height. All the lines must be made 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


161 


very light. They should be much lighter than shown in the en¬ 
graving. Each oval should be retraced at least ten times, and 
much good can be accomplished, especially in class drills, by 
counting 10 rapidly for each oval. The ovals should overlap at 
least one-third. They should be the form of O. Uniformity is an 
element of the greatest importance. The full page should be made 


to present a neat and well arrangd appearance. The work should 
be arranged as described under the heading: Arranging the Work 
on the Page. The movement must be the pure arm movement, 
which means that the arm must rest on the desk and that the 
skin muscles at the arm rest must stretch and contract as the arm 
moves. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 6 




First, give attention to all the details of position. This step 
should always be fully covered at the opening of the writing pe¬ 
riod. Pupils should receive more or less individual attention in 
matters of position, according to their individual habits of care¬ 
fulness or indifference. The positions of the hands and penholders 
should always be noted with special care. This drill shows the 
ultimate end all teachers and pupils should aim to attain, but only 
a few pupils in Grade IY will be able to make the full line with¬ 
out lifting the pen or shifting the paper. Every pupil, however, 


should be required to learn to make at least one-third of the line 
before stopping or lifting the pen, and this should be increased to 
a half line or more in all possible cases. In grading this lesson 
the length of line reached by the pupil without stopping or lifting 
the pen should be taken into account. The lines should all be 
very light—much lighter than shown in the engraving. Light lines 
are of first importance in all penmanship practice. Speed is also 
of first rank importance. The count for this drill is 2 or 10. In 
counting 10 the connecting strokes are made on the even counts. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 7 



First give proper attention to details of position. Explain this 
lesson by pointing out that the o’s are to be made small and at 
the middle of the space between two ruled lines. The surrounding 
ovals should be between two ruled lines, just about filling the 
space. The horizontal stroke following the o should be carefully 
noted. As nearly as possible, a full line should be made without 
lifting the pen or shifting the position of the arm or paper. Most 


pupils will find it difficult to make more than three or four let¬ 
ters at first without reaching the movement limit, but constant 
effort should be made to reach farther. The lines must all be 
made as light as possible. The horizontal position of the sur¬ 
rounding oval is an important feature. The spacing must be care¬ 
fully considered. The full page should show even columns. The 
o’s must be closed at the tops. The pure arm movement must be 






162 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


insisted upon. In trying to make tlie movement reach a longer 
line, care must be exercised not to turn the band. The increased 
reaching power must be produced by increasing the stretching 


capacity of the skin muscles at the arm rest. The entire forearm 
must always act as a unit, admitting of no finger action or bend¬ 
ing of the wrist. 




GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 8 


Require all pupils to assume proper position in all details, noting 
especially that arms are down on the desks; that wrists are raised 
slightly, and that penholders point between the elbows and shoul¬ 
ders. This lesson should be made with the same movement used 
in lesson 6. The letters should be spaced evenly. The movement 
should be continuous; that is, not stopping between letters. To 
secure this kind of movement the pen must be lifted while in 
motion at the completion of each letter, and returned to the paper 
at the beginning of the succeeding letter without stopping the 
motion. The greater the number of letters that can be made with¬ 


out stopping the movement or shifting the position of the paper 
or arm the better. Each letter is finished with a downward 
stroke, giving this stroke the same position as in connected O’s. 
The count is the same as for lesson 6, and the practice should be 
the same as on lesson 6 in every way except that the connecting 
strokes are omitted. The lines should be as light as they can be 
made with the proper pen and ink. Light lines indicate refined 
touch, which is very important in learning penmanship. The let¬ 
ters should be slightly less than a ruled space in height. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 9 


(3 


(3 


(3 


Note: Lessons 9 and 10 as given in Book IV, should be trans¬ 
posed. 

Begin by checking up the details of position. See that every 
element necessary for arm movement practice is observed. The C 
is made to the count of 2 or 10. It is necessary to make a slight 
break in the movement between letters because in finishing a let¬ 
ter properly the pen is not moving directly toward the beginning 
point of the succeeding letter. This break, however, is a deflection 


l (3 (3 <3 (3 

in the direction of the movement, and not a stop. It is necessary 
to avoid stops as much as possible in arm movement practice. The 
small loop at the beginning of the letter must have the same slant 
as the body of the letter. The letter should be made slightly less 
than a ruled space in height. The lines must all be very light. 
The pen must be lifted, at the completion of each letter, without 
stopping. If it is found that the finish of the letter is blunt, or 
has a slightly thickened effect, it is certain that the pen was not 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


163 


lifted while in motion, but that the motion stopped before the pen be about the same as in the copy. The lower end of the beginning 
was lifted. This should be carefully watched. The spacing should loop is at the middle of the length of the letter. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 10 

£666 C £66666666 


First, give proper attention to all details of position. In pre¬ 
senting this lesson call attention to the following details: The 
upper part of the E is one-third the length of the entire letter, or 
half the length of the lower part. The minute loop must be very 
small and point downward toward the right, standing at right 
angles to the slant of the letter. Draw a line across the backs 
of the two parts and show that this line is slanted like the oblique 
straight line drill, and like all writing. The bottom of the E is 
the same form as the bottom of the C. In practicing the E the pen 
must be lifted at the completion of the letter ivithout stopping the 


motion, as explained in the C and O. This is very important as 
an element in proper arm movement practice. The lines must be 
very light. The spacing must be uniform. The letters should be 
slightly less than a ruled space in height. There is the same de¬ 
flection in the direction of motion between the E’s as between the 
C’s, and the movement cannot carry the pen in a direct line from 
the finishing point of one letter to the beginning point of the suc¬ 
ceeding letter. The motion, however, should not stop. Speed is 
always essential in good arm movement practice. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 11 



Check up details of position. Explain the details of the A by 
covering, especially, the following points: The letter should be 
slightly less than a ruled space in height; the first down stroke 
is very similar to the first down stroke of the O, but slants more; 
the turn at the bottom of the first down stroke is very narrow, 
as compared with the corresponding turn in the O, being only 
about half as wide; the up stroke should be made as nearly 


straight as it is possible to make it with a rapid arm movement; 
the letter is closed at the top; the second down stroke is joined 
to the up stroke with a point, or angle, and there should be as lit¬ 
tle retrace as possible, and never a loop at this joining; the final 
down stroke is practically straight for two-thirds of its length and 
then changes to a rather intense left curve for the remainder of 
the stroke. The pen should be lifted at the completion of the 



164 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


letter without stopping the motion, as explained for the O, C and point of one letter to the beginning point of the succeeding letter, 

E. The movement between letters is uniform, the same as be- and there should, therefore, be no stop between letters, 

tween O’s, carrying the pen in a regular curve from the finishing 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 12 




Give the necessary attention to details of position first. This 
lesson combines mere movement and letter practice. The mere 
movement section should be made a full ruled space in height, 
uniform, very compact, and with the lightest possible lines. It 
should be made about the length shown in the copy. The N’s should 
be a little less than a ruled space in height. The small loop used 
at the beginning of the N is also used in exactly the same size 
and form in ten other capitals, and with a slightly increased size 
in still two others, making thirteen capitals, or half the alphabet 
in which it is used. It is, therefore, the most widely used stroke 


in the capital alphabet, and should be thoroughly studied and 
mastered. The first long down stroke in N should be made as 
nearly straight as it is possible to make it with a rapid move¬ 
ment. The joining at the bottom should never be a loop and 
should be retraced as little as possible. The second part is not as 
high as the first. The final stroke is very similar to the final 
stroke in the A, and the pen should be lifted without stopping 
the motion. The count for the N is 3. The small letters are one- 
third the height of the capital and spaced apart well. All lines 
should be perfectly light. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 13 










Give the necessary attention to details of position. Make the 
mere movement section of this lesson supply an opportunity for 
real training in doing work of a high quality. See that only very 
fine lines are made; that the woi’k is compact and uniform, and 


that it just fills a space on the paper. The first and second parts 
of the M are the same as in N and the third part is as much 
lower than the second as the second is lower than the first. The 
final stroke is very similar to the corresponding stroke in A and 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


165 


N, and the pen should be lifted while in motion upon completing 
the letter. The spacing between the parts of the M is narrow. 
There should be no loops at the bottom joinings, and the least 
possible retrace. The d is the same height as the second part of 
the M and is the “final” form of d, being finished with a down 
stroke. The loop in the d is much smaller than the loop in 1. The 


spacing between the small letters is quite long, which is helpful to 
the movement. The oval in the d slants more than the oval in the 
o. The four down strokes in the u and n are straight. The count 
for the M is 4 and it is well to work on the M alone until a good 
movement for it has been developed. All lines must be very light. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 14 



Check up the details of position first of all. In presenting this 
lesson insist that the mere movement work should show improve¬ 
ment and that in smoothness, uniformity, fine line quality and 
compactness it should reach a high standard. The lines should 
be much finer than could be shown in an engraving. The H should 
be slightly less than a ruled space in height. The first stroke is 
the same as the corresponding stroke in the N and M. This is 
called the Controlling Stroke of this group. (See Chart Section.) 
The second part of the H is the same height as the first part. It 
has a very sharp curve at the top, which changes to a straight 


stroke for the lower two-thirds of its length. At the bottom of 
the second down stroke there is a sharp angle. There should never 
be a loop at this point. The connecting loop between the two 
parts is inclined upward at the left end; is very small, and ap¬ 
parently loops around the first long down stroke. The count for 
the H is 4. The l’s are as high as the H. All the down strokes 
in the small letters, except the first in the g, are straight. Quite 
long spaces are made between the joined small letters. Each 
word is finished with an up stroke. Light lines should be used 
throughout. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 15 


Give the necessary attention to details of position, first of all. 
In the mere movement part of the lesson a new drill is intro¬ 
duced, which will be helpful in making the loop used at the be¬ 
ginning of many capitals, if well mastered. The mere movement 
drill should be made in the direction indicated by the arrows, and 
this part of the lesson should be made one ruled space in height. 
The lines must all be very light and the movement must be rapid 
to be helpful. Each oval should be retraced about ten times and 


both the inner and the outer ovals are made with the one con¬ 
tinuous stroke as clearly shown in the copy. The first stroke in 
the K is the same form as the corresponding stroke in the N, M 
and H. The second part of the K begins the same as the second 
part of the H. The part above the minute loop, in the second 
part, and also the part below the loop, is a compound curve. The 
minute loop is like that in the E. It is placed at right angles to 
the slant of the letter, and appears to loop around the stem stroke. 



166 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



The count for the K is 4. The “final” d is used, and the g has must be very light. Spacing and uniformity are always of great 

a full length up stroke. The d and g ovals are alike. All lines importance. Neatness for the full page must be insisted upon. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 16 



Note all elements of proper position to begin with. In the mere 
movement part of this lesson some. improvement over the work 
on the same drill in the preceding lesson should be noticeable. It 
should be possible to make it with a little more speed and with 
finer lines, than at first. The Q has the same initial loop used 
in the N, M, H and K, but has a full right curve in the long down 
stroke following, instead of the straight stroke. This new form 
is the Controlling Stroke of the third group of capitals, the Q, 
Z, X and W. The Q is one of the best capitals for rapid, smooth 
arm movement drill. The loop at the bottom must lie flat on the 


line and not turned upward at either end, especially not at the 
left end. It is the same form as the loops in D and L. The Q 
rests on the line at two points. The pen should be lifted without 
stopping the motion at the completion of the letter. The count 
for the Q is 8, the three coming on the cross stroke at the bottom. 
All the down strokes in the small letters are straight. The spacing 
must have special attention, making it wide between letters, and 
narrow between parts of n. The Q is less than a space in height. 
The lines must be light. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 17 


Require every pupil to assume the proper position, after which 
explain the following details connected with this lesson: Make 
the mere movement part as in the two preceding lessons; but im¬ 
provement should be shown in line quality, regularity, speed and 
accuracy of form. The mere movement drill should be the full 


space in height. The first part of the Z is the Controlling Stroke 
of the present group. It is the same in the four letters of the 
group, Q, Z, X, W. The loop at the line is small and lies almost 
flat on the line, being inclined upward slightly at the right end. 
The loop below the line is small, being the same size as in small z. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


167 



The crossing of the lower loop Is at the line. Special care must 
be used not to make the loop at the line too large, or the turn at 
this point too broad; and to make the lower loop slant with the 
upper part of the letter. The final up stroke in the Z extends up 
to the height of the minimum small letters. The upper part of 
the Z is less than a ruled space in height. In the small letters all 


down strokes, except the one in o, are straight. The spacing be¬ 
tween the small letters is wide. The movement must be rapid 
enough to afford real training. All action of the fingers, in them¬ 
selves, must be guarded against. The lines must all be made as 
light as possible. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 


Lesson 18 


/ ?^) Y^ Ya Y^ Y^ Y^ Y^ Y^ 

Ay Ay Ay Aiy Ay Ay Ay 


Refer to position first of all. This lesson calls for still further 
practice and improvement in the double-oval mere movement 
drill. The aim should be to make finer lines and embody greater 
accuracy, uniformity and smoothness in the drill. It should be the 
full space in height. The initial stroke in the X is the Controlling 
Stroke of this group, as used in the two preceding lessons. In. 
making the first stroke in the X the pen should be lifted while 
in motion at the completion of the stroke. The second part be¬ 
gins at the same height as the first part and is a regular curve 
throughout the full length of the down stroke. The two parts 

GRADE IV 


should touch at the middle, but should not cross. The final up 
stroke is the same as the final up stroke in x, u and other small 
letters. Since this letter is finished with an up stroke it is not 
very well adapted to use as a class drill with counting, although 
it may be made to the count of 3, making the entire second stroke 
on the three. In the small letters all the down strokes are 
straight, except the first in the a. The spacing between the 
connected small letters is wide. The small letters are one-third 
as high as the capital. All lines should be made very light. 


BOOK IV 


Lesson 19 


Check up the details of position throughout the class. In the duce the finest possible quality of work. The work should be the 
mere movement part of this lesson it should be the aim to pro- full space in height with very fine lines and the great uniformity 



168 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



and compactness. The first stroke in the W is the Controlling 
Stroke of the present group, comprising the Q, Z, X and the W. 
The pen should not be lifted in making the W. Great care must 
be exercised not to make loops at the several joinings. These join¬ 
ings must be pointed and not rounded. All the strokes in the W 
are curved. The first and second parts are of even height and 
the third part is two-thirds as high as the first. The final up 
stroke curves outward quite sharply near the top. The W should 


be made slightly less than a space in height. The small letters 
afford one of the best combinations of small letters for drill pur¬ 
poses. The down strokes in the small letters are all straight, 
except the first in the g. The wide spacing between the joined 
small letters should be given special attention. The movement 
should be constantly under guard to make sure that it is of the 
arm, with the little finger gliding. All lines should be very light. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 20 



After calling attention to the details of position, explain the 
lesson by directing attention to the following details: The mere 
movement part should be a call for finer work than ever before 
produced. It should be a full space in height and all the lines 
should be the finest the pupils can make. The work should be 
uniform and compact and should be done with a free and rapid 
arm movement. The first part of the V introduces the Controlling 
Stroke of the present group, which is comprised of Y, U and Y. 
In this Controlling Stroke the initial loop is the same as in N, M, 
H, K, Q, Z, X and W, but the long down stroke is a compound 
curve. In the N, M, H and K this long down stroke is straight 



and in the Q, Z, X and W it is a right curve, but in this group 
(V, U, Y) it is a compound curve. The long up stroke extends up¬ 
ward to a little more than two-thirds the height of the first part. 
Since the letter finishes with an up stroke it is not well adapted 
to counting, but it should be made with a free, rapid movement. 
The finishing part curves outward quite sharply. The small let¬ 
ters are especially suited to developing the glide from letter to let¬ 
ter that is of very great importance. All the down strokes in the 
small letters, except the first in the g, are straight. All lines must 
be light. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OP PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


169 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 21 



Begin by directing attention to details of position. In this les¬ 
son a final opportunity is given to make the compact, continuous 
oval of the high quality that should be attained by every pupil. 
A special effort should be made to see if all can make it embody 
the desired fine line quality, the perfect uniformity and the com¬ 
pactness that should be the aim at all times. The movement 
should be rapid and wholly of the arm as it rests on the desk. 
The little finger should glide smoothly with the movements of 
the arm. The pen should be held with extreme lightness. The 
first part of the U and half the up stroke are the same as the 
corresponding parts in the V. The second part of U extends to 


the same height as the second part in V—a little more than two- 
thirds the height of the first part. At the top of the second part 
a pointed joining is made. No loop should be made at this joining 
and the retrace should be as short as possible. The final down 
stroke in U is very similar to the corresponding strokes in A, N, 
M and K. The pen should be lifted while in motion at the com¬ 
pletion of the letter. The small letters use only straight down 
strokes, except in the o. The wide spacing between the joined 
small letter should be given careful attention. The lines must all be 
very light. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 22 



Give the necessary attention to the details of position. In this 
lesson the entire attention is given to letters, but it is well to 
have a preliminary mere movement drill before commencing on 
the Y. In the Y the form is exactly like the U to the top of the 
second part. The long down stroke extending below the line is 
straight and is one of the longest strokes used in the capital 
alphabet, only the one in the J being longer. The loop below the 


line is small, being the same as in the small y. The crossing of 
the loop is at the line. Special care is required to make the second 
down stroke on the same slant as the first. The first part of the 
Y is the Controlling Stroke as used in the V and U. The move¬ 
ment required to make the Y is really a two space movement and 
it should be the aim to use the pure arm movement in making it, 
trying to develop additional freedom of movement. It will some- 



170 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


times be found helpful to have pupils work on the oblique straight 
line drill, making it two spaces, before working on the Y. In the 
small letters only the down strokes of the o’s and the first in the 


g should be curved. The loop in the g and in the Y are alike in 
every detail. This is a detail to which special attention should be 
given. All lines should be made very light. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 


Lesson 23 



c t- n crs 



Call attention to correct position. Be sure the penholders point 
between the elbows and shoulders. In this lesson a new form of 
stroke is introduced—the stem stroke in the T. This stroke, 
without the loop at the bottom, is the Controlling Stroke used in 
two groups of capitals—T, F, D and P, B, R. This stroke is an 
equal compound curve—the upper half being a left curve and the 
lower part being a right curve. This stroke is the same height as 
the second part of Y, U and Y. It is necessary to make the 
stroke shorter, in this way, to allow for the top stroke and yet 
not make the completed letter higher than the other capitals. The 
pen must come to a complete stop before making the cross-swing 


stroke which finishes the stem stroke, and the pen should be lifted 
without stopping the motion upon completing this stroke. The top 
loop has the same form used in the eleven preceding letters (N, 
M, H, K, Q, Z, X, W, V, U, Y) but is slightly larger. The long 
stroke across the top has a horizontal position. The two parts of 
the letter should never conflict. In writing the word tune the 
stem of the T and the small letters should be made with one 
stroke; that is, without lifting the pen, and the top stroke of the 
T should be put on after the word has been written. All down 
strokes in the small letters are straight. All lines must be light. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 24 








Begin by calling attention to the details of position. In the 
present lesson the F is made the same as the T, in the preceding 
lesson, except for the addition to the cross-swing stroke and the 
final tick stroke in the stem part. The movement possibilities in 


the F are really quite great, as it requires a very graceful swing 
and also a smooth oval movement to make it well. It can be 
made to the count of 5—3 for the stem and 2 for the top stroke, 
or cap. The pen should be lifted without stopping the motion upon 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


171 


completing the cap stroke. Care must be used in determining the 
height of the stem so the completed letter, with the cap, will be 
of even height with other capitals. The stem and cap should 
never touch each other. It is a good plan to practice the cap 
stroke alone, making it to the count of 2, or 10 for five strokes. 
After making a row of the caps with a rapid movement, it is 


excellent practice to try to make the stems at the proper places 
under the caps with a rapid movement. Or a row of stems may 
be made first, and then the caps put on afterward. To place them 
all accurately with a rapid arm movement is an excellent test. 
The second down stroke in the a and both down strokes in the n 
are straight. All lines must be very light. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 25 



Direct attention to all details of position, preparatory to work¬ 
ing on this lesson. Great care must be exercised by the teacher to 
make sure that pupils do not revert to the finger movement in 
practicing these lessons. It must be understood that the work in 
hand at this time is to train the arm to operate with what is 
called the arm movement. Nothing short of arm movement effort 
will help in this undertaking. The initial stroke in the D is the 
Controlling Stroke used in the T and F, and these three capitals 
comprise the fifth group. The beginning point in the D is the 
same in height as the beginning points in T and F, which is low 
enough to permit making the final oval at an even height with 


all capitals. The loop at the bottom is the same form as the cor¬ 
responding loops in Q and L and lies flat on the line. The D rests 
on the line at two points. All down strokes in the small letters 
except in o, the first in g and both in the final d, are straight. 
The 1 is the same height as S but the d is shorter and the loop in 
d is smaller than the loop in 1. The loop at the top of S is half the 
length of the letter. The long down stroke is the same kind of 
stroke used in the D but is longer. The bottom of the S is like the 
bottom of T. Final up strokes must be made on all words except 
where final d is used. All lines must be fine. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 26 


Give the usual attention to details of position. In the P and B 
the same initial strokes are used as in T, F and D. The main 
body of these two capitals is the same and wide throughout. The 
space between the two down strokes is very narrow. The minute 
loop in the B is the same form and stands in the same position as 
the corresponding loops in E and K—at right angles to the slant 
of the letter. The final t will require special attention. It must 


never be crossed. The t’s and d’s are not as high as the capitals 
or the 1, but are the same height as the stems of the P’s and B’s. 
The first down stroke in the a and both down strokes in the final 
d’s are curved, but all other down strokes in the small letters of 
this lesson are straight. Every final letter in every word should 
have a final up stroke, except in the case of final d. The move¬ 
ment must be given very close attention. It will be a great temp- 



172 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



tation at times to sacrifice the arm movement to secure better 
forms, and while it is not expected that pupils in this grade will 
always be able to use the arm movement in its purest form, yet 
the finger movement must be guarded against and reduced to 


the minimum. Teachers must not be so strict as to arrest all ef¬ 
fort, but must understand that partial arm movement is better 
than none at all. The plan must be to develop the arm movement, 
bringing it gradually into use. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 27 








Begin with proper consideration of position. In considering 
the R note that the letter is the same form as the P and B to 
the beginning of the minute loop, ana the same as the B to the 
completion of the minute loop. The R may be finished by extend¬ 
ing the final stroke below the line and by lifting the pen, as di¬ 
rected for the K. The I is one of four capitals (S, G, I, J) that 
commences with an up stroke. Special care must be exercised to 
give the I the correct slant. Most pupils are inclined to make the 
letter too nearly vertical, or even slanted toward the left. All 
crossings in the I are at the same point. The l’s are as high as 
the capitals and the d’s are only as high as the stem in the R. 
The long down stroke in the d when used at the beginning or 


within a word; that is, when followed by another letter, is 
straight, and not curved as in the final d. Every down stroke 
in the small letters of this lesson, except in o and the first in the 
g and in the a’s and d’s, is straight. The spacing between small 
letters is wide. Teachers must understand that pupils are not 
expected to learn all about the arm movement in this grade any 
more than they can learn all about any other subject, but con¬ 
stant vigilance must be exercised to develop as much arm move¬ 
ment power as possible. The pure arm movement should be used 
in mere movement drills, and in the letters it should be as nearly 
pure as possible. 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 28 

See that every pupil assumes the proper writing position. The the corresponding parts in the S. The second part of the G ex¬ 
initial up stroke and the loop at the top in the G are the same as tends to half the height of the loop. The bottom of G is like the 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


173 






corresponding parts in T, S and I. The loop in the top of L is the 
same form as the loops in S and G. The stem in the L is the same 
as in S, but is slanted a little more than in the S. The loop at the 
bottom of the L is the same form as the corresponding loops in 
Q and D, and must lie flat on the line. The several final d’s must 
be noted. The loops below the line are alike. All down strokes 
in the small letters, except the ovals in the o’s, d’s, a’s and g, are 
straight. Practically no spaces are left between words, but the 


spaces are wide between letters in words. The d’s are not as high 
as the 1 or the capitals. Pupils who seem to have great difficulty 
in using the arm movement should be required to revert to mere 
movement drills frequently. The spacing and final page appear¬ 
ance should be considered very important in grading the final 
page. Light lines must always be regarded as of the highest im¬ 
portance. Speed will usually help in increasing the freedom in 
the arm movement. 





GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 29 



Give the usual specific attention to the details of position. The 
J is the only capital that begins below the line. This is necessary 
to permit making both crossings at the line, which should be 
done since the crossing of the lower loop must be at this point. 
The upper loop is twice as wide as the lower loop, and the lower 
loop is two-thirds as long as the upper. The long down stroke 
is straight, and this is the longest straight line used in the capi¬ 
tals. Special care must be used to make the upper part slant 
like all capitals, and to make both parts slant alike. The upper 
loop in the J is about twice as wide as the loop in the I. The J 
will usually afford better movement possibilities than some of the 


shorter capitals and the movement should be considered one of 
the most important elements to consider. The lines should all be 
as light as it is possible to make them. The spacing between the 
small letters in the words must be given the necessary attention. 
All the down strokes in the small letters, except in the o’s and the 
first in the g, are straight. Each word has a final up stroke. 
Among the numerals the 4 and 6 extend higher than the others and 
the 7 and 9 lower. The numerals afford but little good movement 
drill, since they are not connected, but the arm movement should 
be used to the fullest extent possible. 



174 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE IV, BOOK IV 
Lesson 30 


/.2 (3fto /£(3ft 0 /£(3dsCyrjoftf.fto 


The 4 and 9 will look the best, extended higher than the rest; 
And it improves the 7 and 9 if they extend below the line; 

But all the rest are only right, when written at an even height. 

The directions expressed in the above rhyme should be strictly 
observed in practicing the numerals. Numerals usually refer to 
values and should, therefore, be made perfectly legible. Special 
attention should be given to the 3 and 5, to make them distinct 
beyond question; and the 1, 7 and 9 also need great care to keep 
from confusing them. The 1 should never have an initial up 
stroke, and the 7 should always have the initial tick stroke. The 
9 should always have a closed oval. The 8 must always have the 


two strokes crossed at the top, and the beginning part of the 8 is 
the oval curve. The 1, the top parts of the 5 and the long strokes 
in 6, 7 and 9 should be as nearly straight as they can be made. 
The loop in the bottom of the 6 is upright; not flat on the line. 
The 2 is the same form as the Q, but smaller. The straight strokes 
in the $, ^ and % signs should extend downward the same as the 
7 and 9. The spacing requires close attention. The amount of 
work on the line should be the same as in the copy. The lines 
must all be perfectly light. The movement should be as purely the 
arm movement as possible. Much detailed criticism is usually re¬ 
quired on the part of the teacher, to secure accurate work on the 
numerals. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 1 



In taking up the work in this grade increased emphasis must 
be put on position and arm movement. While it is presumed that 
the pupils have been properly instructed in these subjects in the 
preceding grade, yet it must be recognized that many will be 
found who have to do much in this grade that should have been 
learned in Grade IV, but that was learned only partially or per¬ 
haps not at all. At any rate pupils in Grade V are more mature 


than they were in Grade IV, and should, therefore, be able to 
undertake a more thorough study of the subject, and should, also, 
carry the development farther. The details of position should be 
more strictly insisted upon. The arm movement should be more 
closely adhered to in all written work. While pupils in all grades 
should be definitely instructed in everything pertaining to posi¬ 
tion, yet as they advance from grade to grade they can be re- 







THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


175 


quired to more completely observe these instructions. This is one 
of the chief differences between the work in penmanship in 
Grades IV and V. The standard must .be higher. More responsi¬ 
bility must be placed upon the pupils. They must be made to feel 
that more is expected of them than heretofore, and more must be 
expected. Good teaching requires that these pupils come nearer 
fulfilling the teacher’s expectations in regard to position and 
movement now, than has been the case in the past. 

The position must be as explained under the chapter devoted to 
that subject, which should be carefully studied. Each individual 
pupil should be examined to see that he is observing the specifi¬ 
cations of proper position. No pupil can be expected to assume 
or maintain the correct position until all the details are dis¬ 
tinctly impressed upon his mind. This requires individual at¬ 
tention from the teacher. Having so instructed each pupil, and 
having checked him up until it is certain that he understands 
what is required of him, he should be held to a considerable de¬ 
gree of personal accountability in the matter. It is .even a good 
plan in grading his work to make it contingent, to some extent, 
upon his faithfulness in observing the rules of position. 

In the matter of developing the arm movement the requirements 
should be fully as exacting as in regard to position. The pupils 
should be made to more clearly understand the necessity of 
making the mere movement drills with the pure arm movement; 
making the work uniform ; making it compact; making the lines 
perfectly light, and using a rapid, continuous movement. Count¬ 
ing will be found very helpful, if properly done. The counts 
should be sharp and quick; properly timed, and continuous enough 
to lead the pupil to make his best effort, which is the effort that 
really determines progress. It is worth more to the pupil to work 
for five minutes in one continuous effort, than to work for ten 
minutes with a stop of a half minute at the end of each minute. 
Continuity is a very important factor in developing the arm 
movement habit. The writing period may be short but the effort 
must be intense. If the lines are heavy it should be ascertained 


where the trouble lies. First, the materials should be examined. 
If these are all right, then the position of the pen in the fingers 
should be considered. If this is all right, then it must be that the 
fingers grip the holder too much. The cause must be found and 
the remedy applied, and a fine line quality is the only test that 
can give O. K. to all the elements that enter into the problem. 
If the lines are coarse, shaky, muddy or smeared looking, or 
heavier on the down strokes than on the up strokes, something 
is wrong. To remedy the defect it is necessary that materials, 
position and manner of gripping be properly adjusted. 

This lesson is called the direct compact continuous oval drill. 
In making it it is well to make what is called one “coat” of the 
drill across the paper, making the work only fairly compact; and 
then turn the paper about (the top toward the body) and make 
a second coat over the drill from the opposite end, always using 
the same direction of movement. This will enable the pupil to 
note with more accuracy the many minute white spaces and by 
trying to strike these white spaces with the pen, in the process of 
making the compactness more even, he will get much training in 
accuracy of movement. In this way the paper may be reversed a 
number of times and in the end a very beautiful specimen of the 
continuous, compact oval may be made. If the line quality is as 
fine as it should be many successive coats may be put on the line 
and it is possible to work for hours on a single line, with con¬ 
tinual improvement in effect. The more lines it requires to make 
the work compact enough to cover the paper, the better. The 
count for this drill is 10. 

The arrangement of the work on the page is very important and 
no page should be given a passing grade that does not have the 
heading written with correct letter forms, correct wording, cor¬ 
rect spacing and correct punctuation. Neither should it be given a 
passing grade if the lesson work is not correctly arranged. It is 
these details that help to make good writing, and to make the 
writing lesson valuable in a broad sense. 



176 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 2 



All that was said about the importance of correct position and 
the arm movement in connection with lesson 1, should be re¬ 
membered and applied continually in this grade, and always with 
increasing thoroughness. Every lesson should be started with 
strict attention to position. It should be made a personal matter 
with every pupil to see that he is observing all the details of 
position of the body and penholding. This lesson is called the 

oblique straight line drill. Its purpose is to discover for the 

pupil his natural slant and to make it habitual for him to write 
regularly on that slant. To accomplish this it is necessary that 
the pure arm movement be used; that the movement be rapid; 
that the movement be forward-backward, and not sidewise (the 
paper must be held in relation to the arm the same as for the 
oval drill) ; that the lines be very light, and that the slant and 
size of work be as nearly uniform as possible. Nothing should 
ever be held at the edge. of the drill to make the edge straight. 
The count to be used is 10, repeating the 10 over and over with¬ 
out pausing between the 1 and 10. The counts are all on the 

down strokes. The drill should be made two ruled spaces in 
height and care must be used to keep the slant uniform through¬ 
out the line. The slant will be easily modified by allowing the 
position of the paper and arm to change in relation to each 
other; or by drawing the forearm backward or by pushing it 
forward too far; or by allowing the fingers to act. If the posi¬ 
tion is correct and always maintained so, and the movement is 
correct, with the muscles relaxed as they should be the slant will 
be very regular. 

This drill may also be made as described for number 1; that 


is, by turning the paper about frequently, and working from the 
opposite end. The movement will always be the same, but the 
opportunity to study the drill will be improved and better work 
can be done by turning the paper occasionally. The pupil should 
come to take great interest in producing a beautiful effect in all 
the mere movement drills, which is possible when very fine lines 
are made and the work is made very compact and uniform. 

Speed and • continuity are two of the most important elements 
in developing the arm movement habit and these should be in¬ 
sisted upon regularly. A pupil who uses a slow, dragging move¬ 
ment, or who makes frequent stops cannot make rapid progress. 
Such practice does not beget freedom; does not require muscular 
relaxation, and does not work effectively in establishing the move¬ 
ment habit. It should be understood that the purpose of the 
mere movement drills is to acquire movement power. Nothing 
short of the right kind of practice will develop this power. 

The full page effect should not be given a great deal of atten¬ 
tion. Smeared or dirty pages should not be given passing grades. 
The heading should be correct in all respects, as far as it is pos¬ 
sible for the pupil to make it so. The letters used in the heading 
must be the correct styles; the arrangement on the line, the spac¬ 
ing and punctuation must be correct, and the pupil should be re¬ 
quired to make the forms the best possible for him. The lesson 
work on the page must be correct, with all margins accurate and 
vacant lines as explained under the heading: Arranging the Work 
on the Page. 

It should be considered incorrect to make turns at the tops and 
bottoms of this drill, showing that there is a tendency to bring in 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


177 


more or less of the oval movement. This can be overcome by 
stopping briefly at the top and bottom, for a time. These stops 
need be only slightly more emphatic than would be made in 
regular practice, but a little extra time added to the stop will 
soon break up the tendency to make the turn, and after that the 
regular movement may be used. 

Left-handed persons will have the extra task imposed upon 
them of making the work slant toward the right, just as it is 
naturally made by right-handed persons. This will seem some¬ 
what awkward and difficult at first but must be insisted upon. 
The slant of left-handed persons must be toward the right, al¬ 
though this is not the easiest slant in itself. It is, however the 


best when all things are considered. All writing must proceed 
from left to right on the page, and all writing must be slanted 
in the direction in which the execution of the letters proceeds. 
This is the same principle observed when one runs forward, in 
leaning forward; or when one runs backward and tends 
to lean in that direction. Writing English script is a work to 
which the physiological structure of the right arm is adapted; 
and to which the left arm is not adapted. But that is a mis¬ 
fortune of left-handed writers that cannot be helped. The slant 
of left-handed writers will usually be less than that of right- 
hnaded persons; but it should slant toward the right in both 
cases. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 3 



Direct that all pupils assume correct positions. Give special 
attention to the positions of the penholders, to see that they point 
between the elbows and the shoulders; and see that the wrists are 
not resting on the desks. This drill is called the indirect compact 
continuous oval. It should be made with the arm movement, to 
the count of 10. The movement should be rapid. The lines must 
be light, the work compact, and the movement as continuous as 
possible. The arrow indicates the direction in which the move¬ 
ment runs. The paper should be turned frequently to help in 
making the work more uniform and to improve the compactness. 
The drill should be made two ruled spaces in height, and arranged 


on the page as directed under the heading: Arranging the Work 
on the Page. The heading should be prepared with all possible 
care, to make sure that the correct styles of letters are used, and 
that the arrangement of the parts, the spacing and the punctua¬ 
tion are correct. The appearance of the finished page should be 
considered important in giving the final grade on the work. All 
the lines must be the lightest it is possible to make them, and 
heavy, shaky, dragging, or otherwise imperfect lines should be 
considered a serious defect. It should be remembered that the 
aim is to develop movement power, which calls for freedom, light¬ 
ness and uniformity. 





178 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 4 



See that all details of position are properly considered by every 
pupil, first of all. This drill is called the direct retraced link 
oval. The ovals should be practiced to the count of 10. Each oval 
should be retraced ten or twenty times. The movement should be 
rapid, which means that the counting should be spirited. The lines 
must be very light—much lighter than shown in the engraving in 
the pupil’s book. The movement runs in the direction indicated by 
the arrow. The ovals should be made two ruled spaces in height, 
and should overlap about one-third. The aim in all these mere 
movement drills is to gain in movement power. To accomplish 
this, slow, dragging movements must never be tolerated, except for 


a few minutes in commencing a new drill, to acquaint the writing 
nerves with the new form. Light touch and rapidity, regularity 
and continuity of movement are the features that build up move¬ 
ment power and these should always be kept in sight in prac¬ 
ticing. Special care should be exercised to make sure that the 
pupils’ arms are not raised from the desk and that they do not 
slip on the desk, while practicing. The skin muscles at the arm 
rest must stretch and contract in all the movements. The wrist 
and fleshy part of the hand must always be raised to prevent fric¬ 
tion. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 


Lesson 5 



Begin by directing all necessary attention to the position, both 
of the body and of the hand as it holds the penholder. This drill 
is called the indirect retraced link oval. It must be made in the 
direction indicated by the arrow and with a rapid movement, to 
the count of 10—retracing each oval ten or twenty times. The 
ovals should be made two ruled spaces of the paper in height 
and should overlap about one-third. The lines must be of the 


finest quality it is possible to produce. The pens must be held 
very lightly. The first joint of the first finger must maintain a 
regular curve, and never be bent downward. This drill will be 
found more difficult than its companion drill, number 4, to most 
pupils, and it must, therefore, be practiced with a somewhat slower 
movement, especially at the beginning. It may also require longer 
time to attain the standard reached in number four, and extra 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


179 


allowance may have to be made for it in determining the final 
grade. But the drill is full of movement possibilities and should 
be well mastered, to make sure that the many capital letters that 


are based upon the indirect oval will not give unnecessary trouble 
when they are practiced, later. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 

Lesson 6 



Begin by directing that every pupil assume the proper position, 
noting all the details carefully. In the connected O drill only 
three or four letters should be joined at first, but the number 
should be gradually extended until at least a half line may be 
made without lifting the pen or shifting the position of the arm 
or paper. Some pupils in this grade will even be able to make 
more than a half line with one stroke and such effort should be 
encouraged in all. It should be noted that the first of the two 
loops at the top (after the first letter) is slightly larger than 
the scond. Also, that the connecting stroke crosses the letter at 

GRADE V 


the middle. The count for this drill is 2 or 10. If 10 is used the 
even counts come on the connecting strokes. The movement must 
be rapid enough to make smooth lines. All the lines must be very 
light. They should be much lighter than shown in the copy in the 
pupils’ books. The letters should be a little less than a ruled 
space in height and the spacing must be uniform. The small loop 
formed in the top by the overlapping lines must have the same 
slant as the main body of the letter. The slant of the letter 
should be the same for each pupil as his oblique straight line 
drill. 

BOOK V 
n 7 



Direct careful attention to the details of position, noting espe¬ 
cially that the penholder points between the elbow apd shoulder, 
and that the wrist is raised slightly from the desk. In this drill 
the large ovals should fill a space between two ruled lines, and the 
o’s should be in the middle of the space. The o’s must be small. 
The horizontal stroke following the o must be given special atten¬ 
tion. The large oval has a horizontal position. The o’s must be 


closed at the tops. At first only a few should be joined, to give 
the pupil a good opportunity to study the form and to accustom 
his writing nerves to following it. But the number should be 
gradually increased until as nearly as possible the full line can be 
made without lifting the pen or shifting the arm or paper. The 
purpose of this and all drills is to develop movement power, and 
with this in view every effort should be made to master difficult 







180 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


features. A movement that can add one more o and oval after it pupil’s books. Light lines are always necessary in penmanship 
seems the limit has been reached, has accomplished something practice, 
worth while. The lines must be much lighter than those in the 

GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 8 



Begin by directing careful attention to the position. See that no 
wrong habits are being allowed to continue or develop. In this 
drill the two forms of movement (oval and straight line) are 
used. The special features to explain to the class are: that the 
three main down strokes in the letter must be as nearly straight 
as possible; that each in order is shorter than the one preceding 
it; that the spacing between the down strokes is narrow; that the 
oval at the beginning of each letter is practically twice as wide 
as one of the spaces between the other parts of the letter; that the 
letter rests on the l-ine ar, the bottom of each part, and that the 


connecting stroke is placed half above and half below the line 
and practically at right angles to the slant of the letter. At first 
only two or three of the letters should be made with the one stroke, 
but the number should be increased as the practice proceeds until 
as nearly as possible the full line can be made without lifting the 
pen or shifting the position of the arm or paper. The lines must 
be very fine — much finer than shown in the pupils’ books. The 
count for this drill is 4—the four falling on the connecting oval. 
This drill should add much to the movement power if practiced 
with a rapid movement. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 9 



Check up the details of position; noting, especially, the arm, 
hand and penholder. The penholder must always point between 
the elbow and shoulder. The wrist and fleshy part of the hand 
must be raised above the desk. This drill is a continuation of 
the preceding drill and the succeeding parts should all taper off 
gradually in height, down to the size of the minimum small 
letters. All down strokes are straight, and the spacing between 


the down strokes is gradually narrowed as the succession of parts 
advances. The movement required is very similar to that used in 
the oblique straight line drill. The connecting oval is placed half 
above and half below the line, and practically at right angles to 
the slant of the straight down strokes. The count for this drill 
is 10—a count on each down stroke. The movement should be slow 
enough at first to enable the pupil to learn to follow the form, 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


181 


but should be gradually increased until it is about as rapid as 
used in the oblique straight line drill. There should be no loops 
at the bottoms of the parts, and also no round joinings, except in 
the last one. At least two sections should be made without lifting 


the pen or shifting the position of the arm or paper, and three or 
four should be made in this way if possible. The lines must be 
lighter than shown in the pupils’ books. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 10 



Note the requirements of good position and see that all pupils 
have assumed the same. It will be seen that the drills, as they 
follow one another, lead from the simplest oval and straight line 
movements to movements involving principles required in the 
construction of letters; and that these principles are introduced 
gradually, and in the order of their simplicity. Thus the con¬ 
nected M comes first; then number 9, which is slightly more dif¬ 
ficult and brings the movement down to the small letter size. 
Now we take up a drill which retains the main features of lessons 
8 and 9 and adds a miniature oval movement , in the small o, and 


additional straight down stroke movements, in the u and 1. Special 
care must be exercised to make all the down strokes in this drill 
straight, except the one in the o. The 1 is as high as the first part 
of the N. At first two or three sets of the connected letters should 
be joined without lifting the pen or shifting the position of the 
arm or paper. This number should be gradually extended until 
as much as possible of the full line can be made with one con 
tinuous movement. There must always be sufficient speed in the 
movement to help in gaining movement power. The lines must 
be lighter than shown in the pupils’ books. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 11 



Take all necessary account of the position first of all. Note the 
positions of the penholders in the hands. This drill is called the 
ratchet movement drill, because it has the form of the ratchet in 
machinery. It is the first; the fundamental, and the most im¬ 
portant drill in learning the small letter movement. It is not 


difficult if practiced correctly and its effect on the movement 
required in making small letters is most encouraging. The oval 
at the beginning of each section should be retraced rapidly ten 
times, to the count of 10. In passing from the oval to the second 
part, a very decided modification in the movement is required. 



182 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


The second part is made like a succession of steps, and stopping 
very definitely, but very briefly, at each step. This drill should 
be made according the small letter movement rule, which is stated 
as follows: Make a quick up-and-down movement and stop, for 
each straight down stroke that rests on the writing line. (See 


full explanation under that head.) Accordingly, the count to 10 
should be rapid for the retraced oval part, and then to 10, with 
sharp accents, and with a stop after each count. The oval should 
be one ruled space in height and the second part should have a 
gradual decrease down to the minimum letter size. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 12 



Direct all pupils to assume proper positions, including the proper 
angle of the penholders. This lesson requires a movement that is 
very similar to that used in the ratchet movement drill. Each let¬ 
ter must be made with a quick up-and-down movement and the 
stop at the writing line. The disconnected letters at the beginning 
are to illustrate more effectively the feature of stopping at the 
bottom of each letter. In the connected letters the stop at he 
bottom of each letter should be as definite as it would be if the 
pen were to be lifted each time. The count for the connected let¬ 
ters is 10—a count on each straight down stroke. The movements 


must all be quick. The special feature of the drill is to make the 
quick up-and-down movement, and stop. This peculiar use of 
the movement enables one to make the straight down strokes, 
which are so necessary in making good small letters. In all the 
small letters there are forty down strokes (not counting the 
tick strokes) and of these thirty-two are straight. It is im¬ 
possible to make the straight down strokes with a rapid arm move¬ 
ment unless one learns to use the movement according to the 
small letter movement rule. The number of letters on the line 
should be as in the copy. The lines must be very light. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 13 


Give “first aid” to any cases of bad position that may be found 
in the class. This lesson is for use in further developing the 
small letter movement. The drill is made to the count of 3—1 on 
the 1 and 2 and 3 on the down strokes of the u. Or the u may be 


made on 1 and 2 and the 1 on the 3. A quick up-and-down move¬ 
ment and stop is required for the 1, and the same for each part of 
the u. The down strokes must all be straight. The crossing of 
the 1 is at the same height as the u. If the 1 were cut off at the 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


183 


crossing the remaining part would be like one of the parts of the 
u. As many of the letters should be connected as possible with¬ 
out lifting the pen or shifting the arm or paper. At first perhaps 
only three or four couplets can be made this way, but the num¬ 
ber should be extended as much as possible. A good penman can 
make the full line with one continuous stroke and without making 


any change in position of arm or paper. It is all a matter of 
movement power. The spacing should be as shown in the book, 
and the lines should be much finer than shown in the pupils’ 
books. It is harmful to practice this or the two preceding drills 
with a movement like the oval movements; that is, with the down 
strokes curved and with broad turns at the bottom. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 14 






Give the necessary attention to the details of position to com¬ 
mence with. This lesson covers the capitals of the first group, 
O, C, E, A, and an assortment of small letters that will be found 
especially well suited to applying the small letter movement rule, 
along with the lower loops, that always need close attention, and 
the final d, which is a good test of movement. The words used 
in this lesson are selected with special consideration of the arm 
movement and should be written with the arm movement. It will 
be best to work for a time on each capital singly—making it 
rapidly, with a good movement to the count of ten. Then each 


word should have some practice singly, after which the full line 
should be written. The l’s must be as high as the capitals and 
the d not so high. The spacing requires careful attention. The 
lines must all be made as light as possible—lighter than shown 
in the pupils’ books. It must be remembered that the work of¬ 
fered in each grade must be quite complete as far as covering all 
letters is concerned, and, consequently, no lesson can be given 
enough time to bring it to the standard expected to be reached at 
the close of the school career. The page effect must be pleasing. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 15 



Refer to the position—calling attention to all important details. 
This lesson takes up the first two capitals of the second group, 


N and M. Each of these capitals should be practiced singly first, 
using a rapid movement to the count—3 for the N and 4 for the 



184 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


M. The small letters are selected as being especially adapted to 
arm movement practice. The small letter movement should be 
usd for making all straight down strokes and the up strokes that 
precede them. The l’s are as high as the first part of the capitals. 
The d is not so high. It will be all right to lift the pen at the 
finishing of each capital instead of connection to the small letter 
following. The lines must be light and the spacing must be 
accurate. Uniformity is one of the most important features in 


good writing. Page effect must be pleasing. The headings should 
be written with as much care as the lesson work. The twenty 
straight down strokes in the small letters of this lesson must be 
given special attention; otherwise much of the best element will 
be lost. The initial loop and first long down stroke is the same in 
the two capitals. This first stroke is the controlling stroke of 
the second group. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 


Lesson 16 



Check up all details of position, making sure that no wrong 
habits are being allowed to grow. In this lesson the two capitals 
should be practiced singly first. Then each word should be given 
separate attention in study and practice. This lesson is arranged 
to require special consideration of the two kinds of controlling 
strokes, often confused, that are very different in the long down 
strokes. Many persons make the first part of W and H alike, 
curving the long stroke in both, or making it straight in both. 
This is incorrect. It should be well curved in the W; but should 
be straight in the H. Special practice on each letter, separately, 


will help to master this difference. The small letters are selected 
to give special advantage to the small letter movement. There 
are twenty-six straight down strokes in the small letters of this 
copy. These must have the fullest possible consideration. AH 
work that does not show these straight down strokes and the 
spacing, quite fully, should be rejected. The d’s and t’s should 
be the same height and not as high as the first part of the capitals. 
The lines must be fine and clear. The engravings in the pupils’ 
books do not show the fine line quality writing should have. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 17 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


185 


Commence tlie recitation with proper consideration of the posi¬ 
tion. In this lesson two forms of beginning strokes of capitals 
are presented, as was done in the preceding lesson. In the two 
capitals in this lesson, one (Z) has the same form of beginning 
stroke as used in the W, presented in the preceding lesson, but 
the other (Y) has an entirely different form of stroke. The first 
long down stroke in the Y is a compound curve, which appears to 
be nearly straight on account of its being so short in each kind 
of curve. The upper part is a right curve and the lower part is 
a left curve. The lower loops in Z and Y are the same length and 


the same width. In the Y the second long down stroke is a 
straight line its entire length. The loop at the bottom of the 
upper part of the Z rests on the writing line. The small letters 
are especially adapted to the small letter movement. There are 
eighteen straight down strokes in the small letters of this lesson. 
The spacing must be accurate—long between the letters in words 
and short between words. The lines must be fine. The initial 
loops in the two capitals are alike. The second part of the Y 
is not as high as the first part. Give all due care to the heading 
and arrangement of the work on the page. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 18 



Begin the recitation by referring to position, requiring every one 
to assume the correct position in all details. In this lesson, again, 
two forms of beginning strokes of capitals are presented. The 
same two used in lesson 16. In the K the first long down stroke 
is straight, while in the X it is a right curve. This difference 
must be strictly observed and made one of the special features in 
presenting this lesson. The second parts of both the Iv and X are 
the same height as the first. Poor work on these two capitals 
often gives them considerable resemblance, which must be se¬ 
verely criticised. The small letters are selectd with special refer¬ 
ence to the small letter movement. There are twenty-three straight 


down strokes in the small letters of this lesson, and only five 
curved down strokes. The 1 is as high as the capitals but the 
d’s are not so high. The modification necessary to make the final 
d, as used in the word kindly, must be noted. Each capital 
should be given separate practice, and each word also, if time per¬ 
mits. The line quality must be fine and smooth. The spacing 
must be accurate. The heading and arrangement of the lesson 
work on the page must be held to the standard. Margins must 
not be overlooked. No work should be given a passing grade if 
carelessly done. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 19 

Begin by calling attention to the details of position. In this part. In the Y the final up stroke curves outward sharply at the 

lesson the same beginning stroke is used in both the capitals. In top. All the U’s may be made like the single U, disjoined from 

both the second part is the same height and shorter than the first the small letters, if preferred. The count for U is 3. The top part 



186 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



of the f is as high as the first parts of V and U. The twenty- 
four straight down strokes in the small letters must be given the 
necessary attention. The extra height of the r must be noted. 
The difference in the slant of the o and a-g ovals must be con¬ 
sidered. The loops in y, g and f are alike in width and length. 
The long spaces between letters in words and the short spaces 
between words are very important details. The crossings of the 



y and g loops, and the closing of the f loop, are at the writing 
line. The initial loops in both capitals are alike. The highest 
consideration should be given to the heading, using the proper 
spacing; the correct letter forms; the required arrangement. The 
page effect must always be considered of great importance. It 
must be pleasing. The lines must be light. The spacing must be 
uniform. The margins must be even. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 20 










Begin by calling attention to the requirements of good position. 
In this lesson the two parts of each capital may well be prac¬ 
ticed singly. The top stroke makes a good movement drill by it 
self, using the count of 2 for a single stroke, or 10 for five strokes. 
The stem of the T is made to the count of 2 or 10 the same way. 
The stem of the F is made to the count of 3—the three falling on 
the tick stroke. The complete T is made to the count of 4, and 
the complete F to 5. Each letter should have separate practice. 
It is good practice to make a line of stems, either for T or F, and 
then with a rapid movement put the tops on afterward. In the 
small letters is presented an unusually good selection of small 


letter movement strokes. In the first three words all the down 
strokes in the small letters are straight. The fourth and fifth 
words each have one curved down stroke in the small letters. The 
sixth word has only curved down strokes in the small letters. It 
would be difficult to select better words for movement training. 
The stems in the T and F are made short enough so that when the 
tops are put on these capitals will be of even height with other 
capitals. The tops should not touch the stems. The swing strokes 
between the T’s and the joined letters are excellent movement 
tests. Make all lines light. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


187 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 21 


Check up all details of position to begin the recitation. In this 
lesson is presented a test that will prove whether or not the 
pupils have been developing the arm movement in the preceding 
lessons. The connected D’s are to be made with the arm move¬ 
ment. At first perhaps only two or three letters can be connected 
without lifting the pen, but more letters should be added if possi¬ 
ble until the full number can be made. Each D should be made 
the same form as if made single, and it is best to practice the D 
singly before trying to connect the letters. The capital rests on 
the line at two points; is a narrow letter, and has a full oval at 


the top. The count is 3 for the D, either as a single letter or 
as a connected drill. The small letters are selected for their 
adaptation to good movement practice. The final d must be 
noted. All lines must be made fine. The details of the heading 
must be accurate. The spacing in the lesson work must be such as 
to make a correctly balanced line. The page effect must be pleas¬ 
ing. No work should be given a passing grade if it shows that it 
has been carelessly written. All passing work must be prepared 
according to a definite standard, as explained elsewhere in this 
text. Heavy lines, blots and scribbling must never be accepted. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 22 



Require all pupils to assume proper positions. In this lesson is 
provided another test of the arm movement. The P should be 
practiced singly first, and then as a connected drill. In connect¬ 
ing the letters only two or three should be connected at first, but 
the number should be increased as soon as possible. The oval 
of the P is broad and the turns at both the top and bottom are 
alike and both are full turns. The part of the P toward the right 
of the stem, or first down stroke, is narrow. In this and the pre¬ 
ceding drill it is better to make the capitals singly with a good 
movement, and with good forms, than to connect them and make 


poor forms with a dragging or otherwise poor movement. In the 
small letters all the down strokes are straight, and the true small 
letter movement should be used. The final t needs special con¬ 
sideration. It is finished with a left instead of right curve, as 
used in the regular form of t; is not retraced at the top, and does 
not have a cross. It is to be used only at the ends of words. 
Light lines must have constant consideration. Spacing is of equal 
importance. No carelessness must be tolerated. All scribbling 
must be rejected. 




188 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 23 



Begin by directing attention to the position. In this lesson prac¬ 
tically all the elements found in the preceding lesson are re¬ 
peated. The B should be practiced singly first and then by con¬ 
necting only two or three letters, until they can be made with 
considerable ease, after which more should be added. If the move¬ 
ment cannot be kept operating with smoothness and freedom in 
connecting the capitals, and at the same time making good forms, 
it is better to make the letters singly. However, much is to be 
gained by learning to make the connected drill and this should 
be the aim in every pupil’s case. It should only be given up after 


the most serious struggle has failed. In the small letters all the 
down strokes are straight, and the true small letter movement 
should be used in making them. The spacing should be like the 
copy—making the same amount of work on the line. The lines 
must be light. All careless work should be rejected. Dirty, 
smeared, scribbled pages should be re-written. The heading should 
be considered an essential part of the lesson for grading. No 
wrong letter forms should be permitted. Neatness, order, arrange¬ 
ment, uniformity and fine lines are important elements in all 
good penmanship. These should be required in all written work. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 24 




Give the directions concerning position to begin with. This 
lesson, like the three preceding lessons, affords an unusually ex¬ 
acting test of the arm movement. The elements involved in this 
lesson are practically a repetition of those embodied in the two 
preceding lessons. The R, is the same form as the B to the 
completion of the minute loop. The connecting stroke is the 
same as in the connected B drill. The down strokes in the small 
letters are all straight, except the two in the d. The final stroke, 
which makes this the final form of d, should be noted. As ex¬ 
plained for the preceding connected capital drills, it is better to 


make the capitals singly than to too seriously mar the form or 
clog the movement by making the connected drill. It is best to 
connect only two or three capitals at first and gradually add more, 
as the movement is able to produce the form better. Every pupil 
should try to learn to make the connected drill, and those who 
fail entirely should have the failure noted in their grades. The 
fine line quality, so often mentioned, should never be lost sight 
of. The heading and the full page effect must always be given full 
consideration. No evidences of carelessness should go unnoticed. 





THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


189 


GRADE V, BOOK V 


Lesson 25 


Begin the recitation by checking up the details of position. The 
connected S drill furnishes another excellent arm movement test, 
and in this case every pupil should be required to make the 
letters connected. The swing between letters is specially well 
adapted to the arm movement. There is nothing about this drill 
that is not found in the single letters, except that the pen is not 
to be lifted between the letters. Two or three letters should be 
connected at first and as the drill becomes easier more letters 
should be added until the full number can be made. The loop in 
the top of the S is half the length of the whole letter. Uniformity 


is an element that should have special attention. The movement 
must be rapid enough to make smooth lines. The lines must be 
fine. The long spaces between the joined small letters must be 
noted. The final d’s must be given the necessary consideration. 
The demands for accuracy, neatness, uniformity, arrangement and 
good movement should be more and more exacting from lesson to 
lesson. Carelessness must be rooted out. No written work that 
shows carelessness should ever be accepted in this or any other 
class. Work that is carelessly done is harmful, and it were better 
had it been left undone. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 26 




Begin by directing that all pupils assume the correct position. 
In this lesson there is much that is the same as in the preceding 
lesson. The connecting strokes, the loops at the tops and also at 
the bottoms of the G’s are the same as in the connected S drill. 
The second part of the G extends to half the height of the top 
loop. The spacing between the G’s must be carefully noted. In 


the word Good there are no straight down strokes in the small 
letters, and the final d must not be slighted. In the word Glue 
all the down strokes in the small letters are straight, and in the 
word Gleam all are straight, except the first in the a. The final 
up strokes in the last two words must always be put on. The l’s 
are as high as the G’s, and the 1 loop is the same width as the 




190 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


loop in the top of the G. The o ovals do not slant as much as the 
d and a ovals. The connecting stroke between the G’s and the 
following small letters must be given close attention. The small 
letter movement must have proper attention in making the straight 
down strokes in the small letters. The work must all show that it 


has been carefully thought out and carefully worked out. These 
are two fundamental requirements in all penmanship practice. No 
careless work should be accepted either in this or any other sub¬ 
ject. Pupils should be required to use the proper letter forms in 
all written work. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 27 


CJ C/ CJ> CP CJ> CP CJ> • ,CJ Cf 

=2^ ZLs 2L ZL ZL> 


Make a careful examination of the positions assumed by the 
pupils, and see that all are correct. In this lesson the loop in the 
top of the L is the same size and form as the corresponding loops 
in the S and G. The loop at the bottom of the L is the same 
size and form as the corresponding loop in the Q and D, and must 
lie flat on the line. The top loop is half the length of the letter. 
The spacing must have due care. The lines must be much lighter 
than shown in the pupils’ books. Fine line quality is always one 
of the most important considerations and no work should be given 
a passing grade that does not have fine line quality. In the small 
letters of this lesson all the down strokes are straight, except the 


first in each of the a’s. The spacing between the small letters in 
the words must be long and uniform. The final up strokes in all 
three words must be put on at full length. Many pupils are in¬ 
clined to be careless about finishing words. Pupils should be im¬ 
pressed with the necessity of getting their concepts of letters so 
clearly in mind during the writing period that they will find it 
easy to use them in all their written work. Untidy work should 
not be accepted. Scribbling should never be tolerated. Habits of 
carelessness are inexcusable and no careless work should ever be 
given a passing grade. Pupils will all learn to be careful if they 
find that is the only way to get their work accepted. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 28 

n n 

Call attention to position, and note carefully whether or not all mences with an up stroke (one of the four—S, G, I, J). It re¬ 
pupils observe the details properly. In this lesson the I com- quires special care to make the top of the I slant properly. It 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


191 


is a very common error to make it too nearly vertical, or even 
slanted toward the left. The loop in the I must slant like the 
loops in S, G and L, and like all letters slant. All the crossings in 
the I are at one point. The lower part of the I is the same form 
as the corresponding parts in T, S and G. In the small letters all 
the down strokes are straight, except the first in the g. The 
spacing between the small letters in the words must be long. The 
small letter movement must be used in making the straight down 
strokes. The swing strokes between the I’s and the following 


small letters should always bring out a smooth movement—a 
glide of the finger that rests on the desk. The lines must be 
light—much finer than shown in the engraving in the pupils’ 
books. The lesson must show that it has been worked out with 
care. The heading must have the proper letter forms; the correct 
arrangement; accurate spacing, and a neat appearance through¬ 
out. No carelessness must be permitted. Papers must be neat and 
pleasing in appearance. Pupils must learn that the shortest road 
to success is painstaking work. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 29 



Give the necessary attention to the position—noting the posi¬ 
tion of the penholder as well as of the body. In this lesson the 
connected J drill provides a test for the arm movement that is 
sure to reveal whether or not the pupil has been developing arm 
movement power in the preceding lessons. The same difficulty is 
often experienced as was mentioned in connection with the I; that 
of making the top too nearly vertical or even slanted toward the 
left. All care must be exercised to be sure that the both loops are 
placed on the same slant and that this is the same as in other 
capitals. The long down stroke in the J is straight. The lower 


loop is two-thirds as long and half as wide as the upper loop. The 
two loops both close at the same point, which is at the writing line. 
This capital is the only one that commences below the writing line. 
This is necessary so the lower loop may cross at the line, in uni¬ 
formity with all lower loops, and so that the upper loop may close 
at the same point, which is necessary for symmetry. The con¬ 
necting loop slants downward toward the right; is half above and 
half below the writing line, and is small. In the small letters only 
the o’s have the curved down stroke. The small letter movement 
must be used in the i and n. The lines must all be very light. 


GRADE V, BOOK V 
Lesson 30 






192 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


Check up every detail of position. In this lesson is contained 
the opportunity for doing a work that may mean much to every 
pupil in the years to come. Numerals nearly always represent 
values, and on this account poorly made numerals have resulted 
in much loss, in the business world, because of being misread. It 
will be well for each pupil to commit to memory the following 
rhyme: 

The 4 and 6 will look the best, extended higher than the rest; 
And it improves the 7 and 9 if they extend below the line; 

But all the rest are only right when written at an even height. 

It is the last stroke in the 4 that is higher than the rest. The 


2 is the same form as the Q but smaller. The two minute loops 
in the 3 must not be overlooked. The two strokes in the 5 must be 
joined. The loop in the 6 must stand upright and be small. The 
7 has a tick stroke and a compound curve at the top. The 8 begins 
with the broad curve at the top, and the lower loop is made in the 
same direction as the loops in g and y. The long strokes in 7 and 
9 must be noted. The parallel strokes in the $ must be close to¬ 
gether. The lines must be light. The numerals do not offer much 
movement value, but should be made with the arm movement. 
Accuracy is the chief feature to be safeguarded in making the 
numerals. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 1 



Beginning with this grade and book, the details of position and 
letter form should be worked out more minutely than is possible 
in the preceding grades. This point will be better understood 
when it is explained that the average pupil’s comprehension makes 
a sharp curve upward at about the age when he enters the sixth 
grade (beginning of adolescence). Some pupils will, naturally, be 
underdeveloped and others will be developed in advance of the 
average at this stage, as at all others; but the period at which 
youth begins its active preparation for approaching manhood and 
womanhood is near the average age of eleven or twelve years. 
Pupils who are maturing slowly will be better able to apply in¬ 
structions covering details when they reach the seventh grade; 
while those who are more precocious will make a high score in the 
sixth. As explained in connection with the work in the fourth 
grade, that period (pre-adolescence) offers the first worth while 


opportunity to commence arm movement practice; but the period 
when the average pupil first begins to grasp the full significance 
of the details of position and of letter form ; and when he first 
actually learns that he can apply the arm movement to all writing, 
occurs at about the sixth grade. It is true that some pupils will 
be found who are as well prepared to work out the details men¬ 
tioned in the fifth grade as others are when they reach the sixth 
or even the seventh grade; but we are now considering the aver¬ 
age pupil. 

In the sixth grade there will be found a strong tendency to 
revert to previously acquired wrong habits of position and the use 
of wrong styles of letters; but pupils in this grade can be held 
more successfully to personal accountability, because they can be 
made to realize more fully what is required of them. This sit¬ 
uation should be made the most of by the teacher, and all direc- 






THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


193 


tions should be given with a more inflexible demand for their ful¬ 
fillment, than is possible in preceding grades. 

It is rare to find a pupil in the fourth grade who has so mas¬ 
tered the arm movement as to be able to use it in all his writing. 
The number of such pupils that will be found in a well taught 
class of, say, 30 pupils, will not exceed three or four; perhaps not 
more than 10 per cent. In the fifth grade there will not be found 
more than twice or three times this number, under equally favor¬ 
able conditions; that is, 20 to 30 per cent. In the sixth grade the 
number will usually be about twice that of the fifth grade, or 
about 50 per cent. 

The per cents mentioned in the foregoing paragraph do not refer 
to the number of pupils who can learn to use the arm movement 
in making mere movement drills, or even in making the capitals, 
and to an extent, the small letters. When considered in this lim¬ 
ited sense the per cents will run about as follows: Fourth grade, 
25 to 35 per cent; fifth grade, 40 to 50 per cent; sixth grade, 55 
to 65 per cent, while practically all will acquire some fundamental 
knowledge and use of the arm movement—a sufficient amount 
to make the undertaking practicable. 

After making the necessary explanations concerning position; 
noting especially that the penholder points between the elbow and 
the shoulder, and that the wrist and fleshy part of the hand 


which holds the pen are raised slightly above the desk, to prevent 
friction, commence on the first lesson. The ovals should be made 
two ruled spaces high, in the direction indicated by the arrow; 
very compact; with very fine lines, and uniform. This is called 
the direct compact continuous oval drill. It is made to the count 
of 10, repeated over and over without a break between the 1 and 
10, and rapidly—rapidly enough to produce a sensation of warmth 
or heat in the arm. 

The heading must be correct; using correct styles of letters, and 
with correct punctuation, correct spacing and with all light lines. 
The work on the page must be arranged as shown in the models 
in another part of the text. 

The practice of turning the paper should be used in this drill; 
that is, after making one coat of fine lines, not very compact, the 
paper should be turned (top toward the body) and a second coat 
made over the same work, from the opposite end, but with the 
same direction of movement. Then, turning the paper again, a 
third coat should be put on, and so on, until the paper becomes 
hidden under the mass of very fine lines. The movement should 
always be rapid. Turning the paper will give an opportunity to 
train the movement in accuracy by trying to always make the 
pen strike in the white spaces. No work with heavy, dragging 
or blurred lines should be accepted for passing grade. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 2 



The position should be the same for making lesson 2 as for must be held the same as for making the oval drill. This is called 

practicing lesson 1. The position of the paper in relation to the the oblique straight line drill. The chief purpose of the drill is 

arm, should have special attention. There must be no side swing to discover to the pupil his natural, individual slant, and make 

in the movement in making this drill. This means that the paper his movement act habitually on that slant. But it is also helpful 



194 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


in developing range of movement and in improving all the ele¬ 
ments of the arm movement. The lines must be very fine. Fine 
lines indicate proper touch, which is very important in learning 
penmanship. There should never be anything held at the edges 
of this or any mere movement drill, to make the edges straight. 
The greatest possible care should be given to the matter of keep¬ 
ing the slant uniform. The drill should be made two ruled spaces 
high as a regular class requirement, and on the final specimen for 
grading; but it will be advantageous to practice it three spaces in 
height if this can be reached without slipping or raising the arm. 
The count for this drill is the same as for number 1—10. The 
counts are all on the down strokes, and should be given rapidly. 
The movement on mere movement drills, at the beginning of the 
practice, should be rapid enough to produce a sensation of warmth 
or heat in the arm. In preparing the final specimen, which is to 
be graded, the movement should be slower than in preliminary or 
preparation drill; but should always be quite rapid. 

The details of the heading must have constant attention. No 
specimen should be given a passing grade unless the heading has 
been written with the correct styles of letters and is otherwise ac¬ 
cording to the specifications. Careless work should never be ac¬ 
cepted. Scribbling should be considered as inexcusable as im¬ 
proper language. Scribbling is the slang of writing. It is to 
writing what vulgarity is to speech and should be looked upon 
with as little favor. Coarse, heavy lines should not be counte¬ 
nanced. They indicate excessive gripping, and lack of refinement 
in the touch. Soiled and untidy papers should be rejected. It 
should be impressed upon the pupils with perfect clearness that 
all specimens submitted for grading must be on clean, smooth 
paper; must be in fine lines; must have the heading correct in all 
details; must show a pleasing arrangment on the page, and must 
give satisfactory evidence of having been prepared with great 
care. 


Normal pupils in the sixth grade will show marked tendencies 
to enjoy physical action and sensation, due to the period of physi¬ 
cal development now being experienced, and intensive arm move¬ 
ment drill will usually delight them. They can be successfully 
appealed to to prepare extra pages of mere movement drills for 
display uses, and this should be done. Success in establishing the 
arm movement habit depends upon a few simple laws which should 
be kept in mind. The same movement should be repeated as often 
as possible, with the least possible variation in form, and in as 
short a time as possible. It is impossible to practice mere move¬ 
ment drills too much. The more they are practiced correctly, the 
finer the line quality will become; the more uniform and compact 
the drill will become, and the more pleasing will be the final prod¬ 
uct. All of which will mean that the movement is approaching the 
stage when it will respond to commands with a promptness and 
precision that will make it possible to execute good writing with 
ease and rapidity. 

It must be remembered that the only purpose of the arm move¬ 
ment is to make writing easy. It cannot perform this function 
until it has been trained to a point of high responsiveness to the 
mind. This training can come only through proper practice. Proper 
practice means that the speed must be sufficiently rapid to pro¬ 
duce the necessary destruction and rebuilding in the muscle and 
nerve substance in the writing machinery; that there must be a 
constant purpose to guide the movement in a definite course 
(form), and that there must be sufficient repetition to establish 
the habit of specific performance. 

Haphazard, indefinite practice is worse than mere loss; it is 
detrimental. Penmanship practice should be intelligently done. 
The teacher should have a definite purpose in view in directing the 
pupils’ efforts. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 3 

The necessity of assuming and maintaining the correct position ing the grade with the grades given on lesson specimens at the 

can be impressed upon pupils by grading the position and averag- close of the grading period. This lesson is called the indirect com - 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


195 



pact continuous oval drill. It should be two ruled spaces high and 
in the direction indicated by the arrow. The count is 10, repeated 
over and over without making a break between the 1 and 10. The 
movement should be rapid enough to cause a sensation of warmth 
or heat in the writing arm. The lines must all be made as fine 
as possible, to promote relaxation and touch. The work must be 
compact and uniform. The suggestion of turning the paper for 
successive coats, as explained for lesson 1, should be used if found 
advantageous. The movement must be watched to see that it 


embodies the following essentials: The arm must never be per¬ 
mitted to slip on the desk, and must never be lifted from the 
desk while practicing. The wrist and fleshy part of the hand must 
be raised slightly above the desk to prevent friction. The little 
finger, acting as a gliding rest for the hand, must move with the 
pen. The penholder must point between the elbow and the 
shoulder. The first joint of the first finger, as it rests on the 
penholder, must not be bent downward; but must be held in an 
arched position. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 4 



Take due note of the elements of correct position in beginning 
the recitation. This drill is called the conic (or conical) compact 
oval. It has the features of light lines, uniformity (tapering) and 
compactness emphasized in connection with lessons 1 and 3, but 
has the added characteristic of the deminishing (or increasing) 
diameter from one end to the other. A fine line may be ruled with 
a pencil for the diagonal edge. This drill may well be practiced 
at one, two and three spaces, but the final specimen submitted for 
grading should be two ruled spaces in height. It will be seen that 
this drill involves a movement graduated along such a scale as to 
cover all letters (as to size) from the minimum small letters to 
the largest capitals (Y and J), when practiced to fill two spaces. 


It is one of the very best forms of mere movement drill and 
should lead to much beautiful page work. 

The speed should be as already often mentioned: that is, suf¬ 
ficiently rapid to produce the feeling of warmth in the arm. After 
the arm movement has become quite thoroughly mastered much 
can be gained by practicing the mere movement drills at a mod¬ 
erate speed, giving increased attention to uniformity and mere 
form; but at the beginning, w'hen the purpose is to first create 
this power, the speed must be rapid. The attention to fine line 
quality must not be relaxed. The plan of inverting the work for 
successive coats may be used. 









196 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 5 



Correct any defects in position found in the class before begin-retrace each oval twenty times. The movement should be rapid. 


ning the work of the recitation. This drill is called the direct re¬ 
traced link oval. It should be made one ruled space in height; 
uniform in all respects; with very light lines, and with the ovals 
overlapping about one-third. It is also good to have pupils make 
this drill two spaces high, if time permits; but the final specimen 
for grading should be made one space in height. Each oval should 
be retraced in the direction indicated by the arrow and not less 
than ten times. The count is 10. If the lines are sufficiently 
light and the work is uniform it will improve the final effect to 


It may be slightly slower than used in the compact oval drills, but 
must be rapid enough to produce smooth lines, and be a real help 
in developing movement power. Merely making ovals is not to 
be the purpose. The purpose is to make movement, and the re¬ 
sult on the paper is to show the quality of the movement thus 
made. A slow, dragging movement is of no value. There must be 
spirit in the movement. The touch must be light. The spacing 
must be accurate. The finished page should present a pleasing 
appearance. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 6 



Note the elements of correct position. Does the penholder point 
between the elbow and shoulder? Is the wrist raised from the 
desk? This drill is called the indirect retraced link oval. It must 
be made in the direction indicated by the arrow. The form, size 
and slant must be the same as for the preceding drill (5). This 
means that the ovals are to be two ruled spaces in height; over¬ 
lap about one-third, and have the slant of the oblique straight line 
drill. The movement must be rapid enough to make smooth lines 


and add to the movement power. The lines must be made the 
finest it is possible to produce. Thick, muddy looking lines must 
be improved by using better materials or by relaxing the muscles 
—especially the grip on the holder. The speed must be rapid 
enough to produce smooth lines—free from angularities and all 
shaky effects. The count is 10, and if the count can be re¬ 
peated for the same oval it is a good indication. The smoothness 
with which the arm acts is the real test of the good that is being 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


197 


accomplished in these mere movement drills. A smooth, uniform, 
light, spirited movement will produce work that reflects these 
qualities. On the other hand if the work looks coarse, tangled, 


muddy and clumsy it is certain that the movement still retains 
these defects. This is true because every stroke is the direct re¬ 
sult of the movement and manner of holding the pen. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 7 


3 (3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 ~ > 


Check up the details of position, noting carefully the position of 
the penholder and that it is held very lightly. This lesson takes 
the step advancing from the mere movement to the capital letter 
movement work. The count is 10—the odd counts on the connect¬ 
ing strokes. The first and most important feature embodied in 
the new kind of work is that the repetition is not over the same 
outline, as in mere movement drills; but a succession of outlines 
are made. In other words, instead of making the movement 
revolutions retrace one outline many times, the new drill requires 
that the successive movement revolutions be strung out toward the 
right. This sounds simple enough but requires a considerable in¬ 
crease in movement power to compass it successfully. At first 


only two or three or four letters should be joined with the one 
continuous movement. But letters should be added as the move¬ 
ment becomes accustomed to the drill, until at least a half line 
can be made with a rapid, continuous movement. Pupils who are 
able to make the movement carry throughout the full line, with¬ 
out stopping, lifting the pen or shifting the position of the arm or 
paper, will have added very much to their movement power. The 
lines must be very fine. The loop at the beginning of the letters 
(after the first) is larger than the one at the close of the letter. 
The minute loop made by the overlapping of the initial and final 
loops must be slanted the same as the letter. The spacing must be 
studied. The letters are a little less than a ruled space in height. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 

Lesson 8 



Begin the recitation by reference to the essentials of good posi¬ 
tion. This lesson is called the small e and oval or connected 
capital C drill. The chief characteristic that distinguishes it from 
the mere movement drills is, as explained in connection with lesson 
7, that instead of retracing a given form, the form is repeated 
in a succession strung out toward the right, necessitating a pro¬ 
gressive glide in the movement. At first only two or three letters 


should be connected without stopping, so the movement may be¬ 
come accustomed to the correct form, without subjecting it to the 
danger of running into a bad form, which is likely to occur after 
the first few letters for a time. The number should, however, be 
increased as rapidly as the movement is prepared to extend into 
additional letters, until as many as possible can be made with one 
continuous stroke, even to the full line. It is one of the best 



198 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


possible tests of good movement to make a full line of this drill 
with one continuous movement and without liftiug the pen or 
changing the position of the arm or paper. The count for this 
drill is 10 — making the long down strokes on the even counts. The 
spacing must be accurate and the lines must be fine. The en¬ 


closed loop must be small, and it is placed near the right side of 
the outer oval. This is a detail that will call for a high degree 
of accuracy in movement control. The movement should be rapid 
enough to make smooth lines. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 9 



Give the necessary attention to position. This drill is called the 
extended M drill. It has three important features that must be 
noted : All the down strokes are straight; the height of the suc¬ 
cessive parts decreases gradually, and the width of the spacing 
between the successive parts diminishes uniformly as each sec¬ 
tion advances. Only the most highly developed movement will 
be able to embody these three features in the drill to a high de¬ 
gree ; but the purpose of all the movement drills presented is to 
develop movement power, and with proper application beautiful 
work can be produced by the average pupil in this grade. The 
count for this drill is 10—making the down strokes on the counts. 
The counting must take into consideration the stops that must be 


made at the bottom of the straight down strokes, and should be 
sharp and well accented, but not too rapid in succession. A more 
prolonged pause must be made between the 10 and the 1 for the 
next section, to give the necessary time for making the connect¬ 
ing oval. The teacher should practice making this drill with the 
counting, to learn how to count to the best advantage. Each move¬ 
ment must be quick — carrying the pen up and down for one part. 
The pen must come to a perfect stop at the bottom of each straight 
down stroke to prevent making a loop at the joining. The move¬ 
ments, up and down, should be made about as rapidly in succes¬ 
sion as steps in rapid walking. The lines must be fine. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 10 



Make an examination of position, and see that all assume it in movement. It is of as great importance in developing the peculiar 
all details. The second part of this lesson is called the ratchet phase of the arm movement required to write the small letters 
drill. This is the foundation drill for learning the small letter successfully, as is the compact continuous oval drill in developing 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


199 


the arm movement at the beginning. Lesson 9 was a preparatory 
drill, for beginning work on the small letter movement. This 
drill must be practiced as the full embodiment of the small letter- 
movement. The ovals should be made to the count of 10, given 
at the speed used in lessons 5 and 6; that is, rapidly. The second 
part of the drill is also made to the count of 10; but the rate of 
speed changes abruptly and very decidedly. The change is like 
changing from the motion of skating to that of walking. In this 
second part the successive parts are made at about the rate steps 


are taken in walking rapidly. There must be a quick up and 
down movement, and a stop for each of the successive parts. This 
is absolutely necessary to be able to make the down strokes 
straight. Unless they are made straight and with the correct 
form of movement there can be no gain from the drill. The rule 
for applying the small letter movement is this: Make a quick 
up-and-down movement and stop for each straight down stroke 
that rests on the writing line. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 11 



Take full note of all the details of position to begin the recita¬ 
tion. In the l drill the small letter movement finds its easiest ap¬ 
plication to actually making a letter. The disjoined letters at the 
beginning of the line are to show the necessity of stopping at the 
bottom of the straight down strokes. The connected letters should 
be made in sections of ten and to the count of 10. Each letter 
must be made with a quick up-and-down movement and a perfect 
stop at the bottom. This is the distinctive small letter movement. 
The importance of mastering this special phase of the arm move¬ 
ment will be appreciated when it is considered that of the forty 
down strokes in the small letters, thirty-two are straight. The roll¬ 
ing or spiral movement used in making most of the capitals cannot 


be used in making the small letters that have straight down 
strokes, without the special modification specified here. The move¬ 
ment must be the true arm movement, and the successive move¬ 
ments must all be made quickly—each practically an instan¬ 
taneous motion; but the stops give the succession of movements a 
close resemblance to steps in tvalking. The letters must be uni¬ 
form in height and spacing. The slant must be the same for each 
pupil as his oblique straight line drill. The lines must be fine. 
This drill will have a very decided effect for good on nearly all 
the small letters if well mastered with the true small letter move¬ 
ment. 


GRADE VI 

Lesson 

Call attention to the details of position in beginning the recita¬ 
tion. Note the positions of the penholders. They must point be¬ 
tween the elbows and shoulders. The wrists must be raised above 
the desks to prevent friction. The l’s in this drill must be made 


BOOK VI 
12 

with the true small letter movement, described in connection with 
lessons ten and eleven; but the o’s are made with the miniature 
capital letter movement; that is, the capital letter movement on 
a very small scale. Each 1 must be made with a quick up-and- 



200 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



down motion and a perfect stop at the bottom of the straight down 
stroke. The process may be compared to the steps in walking. 
The ten l’s are to be made to the count of 10—quick, sharp counts, 
with definite pauses between them. The o’s are also made to 
the count of 10, and the time and rate should be the same in the 
o’s as in the l’s. At first it will be all right for the pupil to lift 
the pen at the finish of the tenth 1 and readjust his position before 
making the o’s. But it should be the aim to so master the move¬ 


ment that the entire line may be written with one continuous 
stroke and without changing the position of the arm or paper. 
The chief purpose in practicing the o’s is to learn to use the glide 
in the arm movement. This is a very important feature in all 
arm movement writing. The glide must be mastered to produce 
uniform spaces and follow a straight course. All lines must be 
fine. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 13 



Check up the details of position. In this drill the same features 
are present as in lesson twelve, except that the spacing between 
the o’s is shorter. The spacing between the l’s is the same as in 
lesson twelve. The count is 10 for each section of o’s and for the 
l’s—making three counts of 10 for the full line. In the l’s the 
true small letter movement must be used. This requires that for 
each 1 there must be made a quick up-and-down motion and at 
the bottom of the straight doivn stroke a stop. The true arm 
movement must be used; but it is not spiral in form as used in 
the compact continuous oval and in many of the capital letters. 
At first the pupil may lift the pen and readjust the position of 
the paper or arm at the end of the first, set of o’s and again at 


the end of the section of l’s, but as soon as the movement can 
be sufficiently developed the pen should not be lifted until the end 
of the l’s has been reached, and with further development it 
should be the aim to complete the line without lifting the pen 
or changing the position of the arm or paper. The purpose is to 
develop movement power. This cannot be done unless continuous 
effort be made to make the movement perform new tasks and 
operate with increased accuracy. The l’s are crossed at the height 
of i. The o’s are closed at the tops. The movement must have 
the distinct glide between letters—especially between the o’s 
Finger movement should not be permitted. The lines must all be 
fine. 











THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


201 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 14 


O - 17 -" 1 ?-- "V - -~U~ 

Begin the recitation by calling attention to the details of posi¬ 
tion. In this drill the same features are embodied as in lessons 
twelve and thirteen — the true small letter movement in the l’s; 
the miniature capital letter movement in the o’s, and the glide 
between the o’s. The Ts are all to be made the height of capitals, 
which is slightly less than a ruled space. The o’s must be closed 
at the tops. The spacing must be accurate. At first it will be all 
right to lift the pen at the end of the section of o’s but the move¬ 
ment should be developed to the point where the full line can be 
made without lifting the pen or shifting the position of the arm 
or paper. The count of 10 should be used with each section. The 

GRADE VI, 
Lesso 



quick up-and-down and stop features of the small letter movement 
must be distinctly employed in each 1. The pen should never be 
lifted before the ten o’s are completed and they should be spaced 
apart far enough to fill the line as far as shown in the copy. It 
is the spacing that is of most importance, because it develops the 
glide in the movement. The l’s must have straight down strokes 
on the slant of the pupil’s oblique straight line drill. The height, 
slant and spacing must be uniform. Thorough mastery of this 
and the four preceding drills will mean very much in the mastery 
of good writing in small letters. All lines must be fine. 

BOOK VI 
i 15 



Take a careful account of the details of position. Be sure every 
pupil is holding the pen correctly. This lesson is full of great 
small letter movement possibilities. If practiced properly it will 
add greatly to the movement power. These instructions should be 
studied diligently and applied very specifically. The section of the 
oblique straight line drill should be practiced rapidly and with 
very fine lines. It may be used alone for a time to make sure that 
the height and slant (especially the slant) are uniform. It should 


be made one ruled space in height. The I’s may be made in sec¬ 
tions of five or ten. Ten is perhaps better as the count of 10 is 
preferable. The small letter movement must be used. The b’s 
should be made in sections of five, and the five letters are made 
to the count of 10. The small letter movement must be used in 
the b’s also. The loop is made to a count the same as the 1. The 
second part is also made to a count, as the minute retrace (called 
a tick stroke) is a straight down stroke (although not counted 










202 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


in the regular thirty-two straight down strokes of the small letter 
alphabet). This tick stroke needs special attention. It is straight 
and retraces downward on the preceding up stroke. At the bottom 
of the tick stroke the regular small letter movement stop is made, 
and from this stopping point the succeeding letter begins. The b 


is thus made to two counts—five letters to the count of 10. The 
1 is on the loop and the 2 on the tick stroke of the first letter; the 
3 on the second loop and the 4 on the tick stroke of the second 
letter, and so on. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 16 



Begin the recitation by calling attention to correct position. 

In the h the count of 2 or 10 is used. The h has two straight 
down strokes and thus requires two distinct movements, each a 
quick up-and-down motion followed by a distinct stop. If the 
count of 2 is used any number of letters may be joined, but there 
should be not less than four, for the sake of good movement train¬ 
ing. If the count of 10 is used there should be five letters (ten 
straight down strokes) joined. The second part of the h is like 
the last part of n and m. The h is the same form as the y, in¬ 
verted. The k is made to the count of 3. The 1 is for the loop, 
as in 1, b and h; the 2 is on the small horizontal open oval, and 

GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 17 


the 3 for the final straight down stroke. There must be three 
distinct stops in the movement in making the k with the small 
letter movement. In joining the h and k the count should be 1— 
2 for the h; and 1—2—3 for the k. The space between the two 
straight down strokes in the k is narrower than between the two 
straight down strokes in the h. The true arm movement must be 
used, since it should always be the aim in every lesson to increase 
the movement power, as well as learn the correct letter form. The 
loops are a little less than a ruled space in height. All move¬ 
ments must be quick. All lines must be light. 



Give the necessary attention to position. In this lesson is com¬ 
bined the miniature capital letter movement (used in small ovals) 


and the small letter movement. The word baggage is one of the 
best words in the English language for this specific purpose. The 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


203 


b must be written with the pure small letter movement. Iu the a’s 
the miniature capital letter movement is used for making the 
ovals and is then merged into the small letter movement for mak¬ 
ing the straight down stroke. The ability to thus change from 
one form of movement to another, and do so smoothly, is of great 
value in producing good writing. The ovals and the following 
straight down strokes to the writing line, are the same in the a 
and g. The tick stroke in the b must have special attention. The 
e must be of even height with the a’s and g’s and must have the 
final stroke put on at full length. The loops in the b and g’s are 


the same size. The long spacing between the letters is a very 
important feature, and must be made with a distinct glide of the 
movement for each space. The lines must be fine. The move¬ 
ment must be rapid enough to produce smooth lines and be help¬ 
ful in developing movement power. Finger action must not be 
permitted. If the movement does not seem to show the necessary 
freedom it will be best to work for a short time on the compact 
continuous oval and the oblique straight line drills, and then try 
this lesson again. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 18 



Give the necessary attention to the position. The small p is 
one of the best letters in the small letter alphabet for movement 
practice covering the straight line and small oval. The p does not 
extend as high as the loop in 1 and b. It belongs to the semi- 
extended group. The long down stroke is straight. The loop at 
the bottom is smaller than the loop in 1 and b, being the same size 
as the loop in the d. The oval is the same form as the oval in a, 
inverted. The lower loop and the final oval are the same form 
as the corresponding parts in the d, inverted. The final oval is 
closed and must not be made higher than a and other minimum 
letters. The spacing requires the glide. This feature of the move¬ 


ment must have more and more attention from lesson to lesson. It 
is of very great importance that the little finger glide with the 
movements of the pen, from letter to letter, instead of remaining 
stationary and causing the hand to tip over on its side, as is often 
erroneously done. The movement must be rapid enough to bring 
developmnet, and to produce smooth lines. There must be no 
gripping of the penholder in excess of what is necessary to keep 
it in position. The first joint of the first finger must not be 
bent down. The down strokes must all be as light as the up 
strokes. Every lesson must be considered from the standpoint of 
arm movement training, as well as in regard to form. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 19 


Begin the recitation by calling attention to correct position. 
In the present lesson, and in others that are to follow, every effort 
must be made to use and further develop the arm movement. The 
increased difficulty in making certain small letters with the arm 


movement must be recognized, and the situation must be dealt 
with accordingly. If it is found that the tendency to use the 
finger movement is very strong, more use should be made of mere 
movement drills, interspersed with the regular lesson work. Each 



204 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 







lesson is designed to help in developing the arm movement, but 
this cannot be accomplished by using the fingers on the more 
difficult work. When the more serious tests Come to hand, extra 
effort must be made to master them in the proper way. These 
occasions will call for thoughtfulness on the part of the teacher. 
The teacher must understand when to review movement drills 
for the purpose of aiding in the present lessons. Constant care 

GRADE VI, 


must be exercised to keep the pupils working to the best advantage 
from the arm movement standpoint. At the same time form 
must be given due consideration. The undertaking is full of 
serious problems and satisfactory results cannot be secured with¬ 
out intelligent direction on the part of the teacher and faithful 
effort on the part of the pupils. Only those who try right learn 
to write right. 

BOOK VI 


Lesson 20 


Mff 

Begin by calling attention to the details of position. In this 
lesson is used the longest stroke to be found in any of the small 
letters. In the f the down stroke is straight. The upper loop is 
the same as 1 and the lower loop is the same form as the cor¬ 
responding part of q. The upper loop crosses at the height of the 
i, and the lower loop closes at the writing line. If the loops were 
cut off where they close the remaining part would make the i. 

If the lower loops were cut off the connected 1 would remain. 

It is usually not a very difficult matter to use the arm movement 
in the f, because of the long stroke required, but there are other 
features that will require special attention. It is an excellent test 

GRADE VI, 



to try to make the letters uniform. It is also a problem to make 
the slant of a succession of letters uniform. The lengths of the 
loops must be uniform ; and the same is true of their widths. It 
will require more attention to make the details of form accurate 
in this lesson than in most of the preceding lessons; although the 
movement will usually require less attention. The lines must be 
light. Finger movement must be considered absolutely out of the 
question in this lesson. This lesson should be written on every 
line like others and the upper loops of one line must be placed be¬ 
tween the lower loops of the line next above. 


BOOK VI 




Lesson 21 


Take the necessary precaution to see that every pupil is using the small letters, in addition to using the most suitable letters for 
the correct position. It will be noted that in taking up work on training in the small letter movement, the first lessons were on 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


205 



r 



rrrr 




letters wholly above the writing line; these were followed by les¬ 
sons on letters in which the long parts extended above and below 
the line (17 and IS) ; this by a lesson in which the loops all ex¬ 
tended downward (19) ; this by a lesson against requiring ex¬ 
tension both ways (20), and now we take up another lesson in 
which the extensions are all downward. It will be readily appre¬ 
ciated that some such arrangement is necessary to give the nec¬ 
essary practice in the elements of the arm movement that make it 
practicable. The y is the same form as the h, inverted. The oval 


and upper part of the straight down stroke in the g are the same 
form as the corresponding parts in the a. The loops in y and g are 
alike. The long spaces between the joined letters must be given 
special attention, and a good movement requires a smooth glide in 
making these spaces. The straight down strokes in the loops must 
not be overlooked. All lines must be light. The page effect must 
be pleasing. The spacing must be accurate—showing regular 
columns in the full page work. Criticisms must be made of all 
details that mar the accuracy and beauty of the letters. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 22 




Give the necessary attention to the details of position. In this 
lesson all the down strokes are straight. It is one of the very 
best words for practice on the small letter movement. The heights 
of all parts of all letters in the word must be uniform. The spacing 
is short between parts of letters and is long between all joined 
letters. It is hardly possible to select a better word for practice 
in the glide which carries the hand from letter to letter in writing. 
Each word should be written complete without lifting the pen or 
changing the position of the arm or paper. While the details of 
form must always be given close attention, this lesson should be 
thought of principally as a small letter movement drill. The 


movement should be rapid enough to make all lines smooth and 
give real training in the arm movement. No finger action should 
be permitted. The spacing should be uniform. The words are 
placed close together. The down strokes should be on a uniform 
slant—the slant of the oblique straight line drill, for each pupil. 
It is a good plan to practice the oblique straight line drill briefly 
before trying this word—making it one space and then less than 
a space in height. All the lines must be fine. The full page effect 
must always be pleasing. No carelessly prepared work should be 
accepted. 




206 


the haus am system of plain penmanship 

GRADE VI, BOOK VI 



small letters that ha^e be . lesson the first group of 

the small Utter - a ^^preliminary or supplementary work it will 
capitals is used, and 1 ital a i one The count for each capital 
be well to practice each capital atone xi e finished 

is 2 or 10. When practiced “® 0 ^ e Among the small 

with a down stroke, omi t, special attention. The r 

‘SdTcompSsl^h fmld^rZgot small 1 letters and are slightly 



higher than the minimum letters. The t is the same height as the 

of words and has no cross. The spacing throughout the copy 
must be carefully noted. The capitals are placed close together^ 
r rhe snaces between the joined small letters are wide, affoidmg 
?he very importTnt training in making the glide which is one o 
the very important features of the small letter movement. The 
movement must be rapid enough to produce smooth lines. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 24 



Check up the details of position to begin tbe^eeUatio^ Inttiis 

lesson so much has been t to bring out the important 

study and careful practice a the three controlling strokes 

features of the copy In.the^£ l8 ' ( strokes 2, 3, 4). 

that use the initial loop are u i are straight; in the 

In the N and M the first ion* aow a nd in the V 

W the first long down stroke is a full n b nt curve, 


AJ^c^As/£ (3dSt, jryoft °/o 

nd U the first long down strokes are compound curves To fail to 
tupse distinctions is to fail to learn one of the chiet lesson 
‘ ttL i s C opy. The small letters are especially suited to give prac- 
ice in the small letter movement. This is because ail the down 
trokes except one in the a and a very short stroke m the top of 
he r are straight. The spacing must be wide between small 
ettei S requSI the glide in the movement. The t is the same 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


207 


height as the second part of V and U. The h is as high as the 
first part of the capitals. The lines must be light and the move¬ 
ment always rapid. In the numerals the 4 and 6 extend higher 
than the others, and the 7 and 9 lower. The 4 does not extend 


below the line. This lesson emphasizes a number of details but 
the most important are the three controlling strokes in the capitals 
and the many straight down strokes and the spacing in the small 
letters. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 25 



Begin the recitation by directing attention to the details of posi¬ 
tion. In this lesson, as in the preceding lesson, three different 
controlling strokes are used. Controlling stroke number 2 is used 
in H and K; number 3 in Q and X, and number 5-6 in the T. In 
the small letters only two curved down strokes are used (in c and 
a). In the H, K, Q and X the initial loops are alike, and in the T 
the top loop is also the same form but is slightly larger. It is 
only by embodying all these features that good results can be 
secured. The small letters are especially adapted to small letter 
movement training, and to get the benefit this lesson should bring 
it is necessary that the small letter movement rule be observed 
in writing the small letters. The wide spacing between the small 

GRADE VI 



letters must be made with the glide so often emphasized. The 
spacing of the whole copy must be such as to make it fill the line 
correctly. Finger action must be prohibited. The movement must 
be rapid, and should be watched carefully from the standpoint of 
movement, making certain that all the elements of the true arm 
movement are employed. The lines must be fine. In the numerals 
the 4 and 6 are made higher than the others and the 7 and 9 lower. 
All numerals, except the 7 and 9, rest on the writing line. The 
work of all pupils should be criticised very closely, both as to 
form and movement, and no work should be accepted that shows 
carelessness or indifference. 

BOOK VI 

i 26 



Give the necessary attention to position, first of all. In this strokes are used — controlling stroke number 1 in the H; number 
lesson, as in the two preceding lessons, three different controlling 5-6 in the D, and number 8 in the I. The small letters were se- 



208 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


lected with the view to giving a special opportunity to practice 
the small letter movement. All the down strokes in the small let¬ 
ters, except one each in a, c, d, g and o (and in top of r), are 
straight. For each straight down stroke that rests on the writing 
line, the distinctive small letter movement should be used. The 
t’s and the d are of even height and as high at the beginning 
point in the D. The b is as high as the controlling strokes in 
H and I. Special care must be exercised to make the I slant like 
the other letters, and all letters must slant the same as the 


pupil’s oUique straight line drill. The glide between the joined 
small letters must be given close attention. The movement must 
always be rapid and the lines must be fine. The loop at the bot¬ 
tom of the D must lie flat on the line. The tick stroke in the 
second part of the b must not be overlooked. The t is closed to 
the height of i. The d loop is small and the crossing is at the top 
of the oval. The c has a dot at the end of the hook. The t’s are 
crossed with short, straight strokes. The spacing must be such 
that the copy will fill the line. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 27 






Give the necessary attention to the details of position. In this 
lesson the capitals employ the two controlling strokes that most 
nearly resemble each other, especially when used in letters. These 
are the second and fourth controlling strokes. The second con¬ 
trolling stroke has a straight long down stroke, as used in the 
N in this lesson, and the fourth has a compound curve long down 
stroke, as used in the U and Y in this lesson. The second parts 
of the U, N and Y are of even height and not as high as the first 
parts. In the small letters all the down strokes are straight, ex- 
except in the o’s. This copy thus provides excellent material for 
practice in the small letter movement. The glide between the 



c/ 


joined small letters must be given close attention. The initial 
loops in the capitals of this lesson are all alike. The down stroke 
in the Y that extends into the lower loop is straight and special 
care must be used to place the loop on the correct slant and make 
it small. The movement should be free from finger action and 
should be rapid. The lines must all be fine. The tick strokes at 
the top of the last part of the w and at the top of the o must not 
be slighted. The t’s are the same height as the second parts of 
U, N and Y. Both form and movement are to be perfected in the 
practice. The arm movement cannot be learned by using the 
fingers; and good forms cannot be learned by scribbling poor ones. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 28 

See that all pupils maintain the proper position. In this lesson In the small letters all the groups are represented—the medial 
three different controlling strokes ai'e used in the capitals— group in s and r; the semi-extended group in the t’s; the extended 
number 2 in the K; number 3 in the Q, and number 8 in the J. group in the k and y, and the minimum group in the remaining 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


209 



small letters. All extended letters above the line are the height 
of the capitals. The tick stroke is also used in this lesson — in the 
w and o. The miniature capital letter movement is used in the o, 
c and a. The many straight down strokes in the small letters re¬ 
quire the use of the small letter movement. It will thus be seen 
that this lesson demands the most minute study of details; the 
most exacting criticism, and the fullest application of the arm 
movement. It would be difficult to arrange a lesson calling for 


more careful thought or making greater demands upon the move¬ 
ment. It should be noted that the loops below the line in the y’s 
and the J are alike. The minute half-oval in the second part of 
the k requires special care. It must never be closed. The glide 
between joined small letters must be given serious consideration. 
Finger movement must not be permitted. The lines must all be 
fine. Work that has been carelessly done should not be accepted. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 29 






Take proper note of the details of position before commencing 
on the lesson work. In this lesson the three most closely related 
capitals in the alphabet are used—the P, B and R. Mastery of the 
P means practically the same for the other two capitals. The 
initial stroke used in these three capitals is controlling stroke 5-6. 
It is not the full height of the capitals. The oval of each capital 
must be broad throughout its length. It must be especially noted 
that the turn at the top of each capital is broad. The minute 
loop in the second down stroke of B and R is very small, crosses 
the stem stroke, and is placed at right angles to the slant of the 
letter, the same as in the E and K. The space between the two 


down strokes is very narrow in all three of the capitals. This 
lesson has all the groups of small letters represented in it—the 
minimum; the medial; the semi-extended and the extended. They 
should all be noted. The p’s and the d are the same height as the 
stems, or, controlling strokes, in the P, B and R. The d is the final 
form, and should not have a final up stroke. The loops in 1 and 
h extend to the full height of the capitals. The s’s are pointed 
at the tops. The wide spacing between the small letters must be 
noted. The lines must all be very light. No finger movement 
should be permitted. 





210 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 30 



Give all necessary attention to details of position. This lesson 
is designed to give a review of all the groups of small letters and 
special practice on the tick strokes used in o, v, w and b. It also 
provides combinations of small letters offering an exceptional 
opportunity to employ the small letter movement. The upper 
loops are all as high as the first part of the N and the t’s are as 
high as the second part of the capital. The slight retrace in the 
o, v, w and b, called the tick stroke, must have special attention. 
The point and retrace at the top of the s must have extra con¬ 
sideration. The down stroke in the s is a compound curve. The 
initial up stroke in the s is a full right curve. The loops below the 


line in the f’s and the g are the same in width and length. The 
movement must always be watched with great care, in the develop¬ 
ing stages. The true small letter movement must be used in all 
small letters having straight down strokes that rest on the 
writing line. It must be understood that proper movement train¬ 
ing is of the highest consideration in learning to write. The whole 
subject is summed up in the legend: Good concepts make writing 
accurate; good movement makes writing easy. Both must be 
constantly improved if there is to be progress in mastering the 
subject. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 1 



In this grade and book the details of position and letter form 
should be worked out still more minutely than in Grade VI. This 
is possible because of the fact that the average pupil’s apprehen¬ 
sion is developing rapidly at this age, and the developing of motor 
system is also still on the sharp upward curve. While there will 
be found pupils who are under developed or developed in advance 
of the average at this stage, as at all others, it is, nevertheless, a 


period in which the average pupil will be found capable of under¬ 
taking the mastery of the arm movement and the study of details 
of form more successfully than at any previous time. It will now 
be found that pupils may be given assignments in penmanship that 
are quite like those that mature people may be expected to per¬ 
form. What seemed almost impossible in Grade IV; perhaps only 
a little less difficult in Grade V, and still beset with some diffi- 






THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


211 


c-ulties in Grave VI, will now seem to be much easier of execution. 
This is due in part to the previous training the pupil has had, 
but is attributable more largely to the fact of the pupil’s approach¬ 
ing maturity. Pupils in Grade VII should be given more compre¬ 
hensive and also more specific instructions than in previous grades 
and the criticisms of their work should be more exact. The stand¬ 
ard which they should be required to attain should be higher than 
in preceding grades. Errors and shortcomings that may have been 
looked upon with considerable leniency in preceding grades should 
now be checked up more severely. Pupils who have not had the 
proper training in this subject in preceding grades will show a 
very decided inclination to revert to their former practices in 
their writing outside of the regular writing period, for a time, and 
in this respect they must be held to strict personal accountability, 
if much good is to be accomplished. Progress in this grade will be 
more rapid than in preceding grades if the pupils are made to 
realize that they should take the responsibility of learning largely 
upon themselves. On the other hand almost no progress will be 
made if they are permitted to revert to their old erroneous ways 
in their general written work. 

As explained in the instructions accompanying lessons 1 in 
Grade VI, the number of pupils that may be expected to use the 
arm movement in all their writing in the different movement 
grades will be found to be about as follows: Grade IV, 10 per 
cent; Grade V, perhaps 20 to 30 per cent; Grade VI about 50 
per cent; while in Grade VII about 75 to 80 per cent of the pupils 
should write regularly with the arm movement. As previously 
stated these per cents do not refer to the number of pupils who 
will be able to use the arm movement in mere movement drills or 


to some extent in the capitals, and more or less in the small let¬ 
ters. In this practice work the per cents will run much higher. 

After making the necessary explanations concerning position; 
noting especially that the penholder points between the elbow and 
the shoulder, and that the wrist and fleshy part of the hand which 
holds the pen are raised slightly above the desk, to prevent fric¬ 
tion, commence on the first lesson. The ovals should be made two 
ruled spaces high; in the direction indicated by the arrow; very 
compact; with very fine lines, and uniform. This is called the 
direct compact continuous oval drill. It is made to the count of 
10, repeated over and over without a break between the 1 and 10, 
and rapidly — rapidly enough to produc.e a sensation of warmth or 
heat in the arm. 

The heading must be correct; using correct styles of letters, and 
with correct punctuation, correct spacing and with all light lines. 
The work on the page must be arranged as shown in the models in 
another part of the text. 

The practice of turning the paper should be used in this drill; 
that is, after making one coat of fine lines, not very compact, the 
paper should be turned (top toward the body) and a second coat 
made over the same work, from the opposite end, but with the 
same direction of movement. Then, turning the paper again, a 
third coat should be put on, and so on, until the paper becomes 
hidden under the mass of very fine lines. The movement should 
always be rapid. Turning the paper will give an opportunity to 
train the movement in accuracy by trying to always make the pen 
strike in the white spaces. No work with heavy, dragging or 
blurred lines should be accepted for a passing grade. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 2 


The position should be the same for making lesson 2 as for 
practicing lesson 1. The position of the paper in relation to the 
arm should have special attention. There must be no side swing 
in the movement in making this drill. This means that the paper 
must be held the same as for making the oval drill. This is called 


the oblique straight line drill. The chief purpose of the drill is 
to discover to the pupil his natural, individual slant, and make his 
movement act habitually on that slant. But it is also helpful in 
developing range of movement and in improving all the elements 
of the arm movement. The lines must be very fine. Fine lines 


t 



212 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



indicate proper touch, which is very important in learning pen¬ 
manship. There should never be anything held at the edges of 
this or any mere movement drill, to make the edges straight. The 
greatest possible care should be given to the matter of keeping the 
slant uniform. The drill should be made two ruled spaces high as 
a regular class requirement and on the final specimen for grading; 
but it will be advantageous to practice it three spaces in height 
if this can be reached without slipping or raising the arm. The 
count for this drill is the same as for number 1—10. The counts 
are all on the down strokes, and should be given rapidly. The 
movement on mere movement drills, at the beginning of the prac¬ 
tice, should be rapid enough to produce a sensation of warmth or 
heat in the arm. In preparing the final specimen, which is to be 
graded, the movement should be slower than in preliminary or 
preparation drill, but should always be quite rapid. 

The details of the heading must have constant attention. No 
specimen should be given a passing grade unless the heading has 
been written with the correct styles of letters and is otherwise 
according to the specifications. Careless work should never be 
accepted. Scribbling should be considered as inexcusable as im¬ 
proper language. Scribbling is the slang of writing. It is to 
writing what vulgarity is to speech and should be looked upon 
with as little favor. Coarse, heavy lines should not be counte¬ 
nanced. They indicate excessive gripping, and lack of refinement 
in the touch. Soiled and untidy papers should be rejected. It 
should be impressed upon the pupils with perfect clearness that 
all specimens submitted for grading must be on clean, smooth 
paper; must be in fine lines; must have the heading correct in all 
details; must show a pleasing arrangement on the page, and must 
give satisfactory evidence of having been prepared with great care. 

Normal pupLs in this grade, as in the sixth, will show marked 


tendencies to enjoy physical action and sensation, due to the 
period of physical development now being experienced, and in¬ 
tensive arm movement drill will usually delight them. They can 
be successfully appealed to to prepare pages of mere movement 
drills for display uses, and this should be done. Success in estab¬ 
lishing the arm movement habit depends upon a few simple laws 
which should be kept in mind. The same movement should be re¬ 
peated as often as possible, with the least possible variation in 
form, and in as short a time as possible. It is impossible to 
practice mere movement drills too much. The more they are prac¬ 
ticed correctly, the finer the line quality will become; the more 
uniform and compact the drill will become, and the more pleasing 
will be the final product. All of which will mean that the move¬ 
ment is approaching the stage when it will respond to commands 
with a promptness and precision that will make it possible to exe¬ 
cute good writing with ease and rapidity. 

It must be remembered that the only purpose of the arm move¬ 
ment is to make writing easy. It cannot perform this function 
until it has been trained to a point of high responsiveness to the 
mind. This training can come only through proper practice. 
Proper practice means that the speed must be sufficiently rapid to 
produce the necessary destruction and rebuilding in the muscle 
and nerve substances in the writing machinery; that there must 
be a constant purpose to guide the movement in a definite course 
(form), and that there must be sufficient repetition to establish 
the habit of specific performance. 

Haphazard, indefinite practice is worse than mere loss; it is 
detrimental. Penmanship practice should be intelligently done. 
The teacher should have a definite purpose in view in directing 
the pupils’ efforts. 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


213 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 3 



Take clue note of the elements of correct position in beginning 
the recitation. This drill is called the conic (or conical ) compact 
oval. It has the features of light lines,' uniformity (tapering) 
and compactness emphasized in connection with lesson 1, but has 
the added characteristic of the diminishing (or increasing) di¬ 
ameter from one end to the other. A fine line may be ruled with 
a pencil for the diagonal edge. This drill may well be practiced 
at one, two and three spaces, but the final specimen submitted for 
grading should be two ruled spaces in height. It will he seen that 
this drill involves a movement graduated along such a scale as to 
cover all letters (as to size) from the minimum small letters to 
the largest capitals (Y and J), when practiced to fill two spaces. 


It is one of the very best forms of mere movement drill and should 
lead to much beautiful page work. 

The speed should he as already often mentioned; that is, suf¬ 
ficiently rapid to produce the feeling of warmth in the arm. 
After the arm movement has become quite thoroughly mastered 
much can be gained by practicing the mere movement drills at 
a moderate speed, giving increased attention to uniformity and 
mere form ; but at the beginning, when the purpose is to first 
create this power, the speed must be rapid. The attention to 
fine line quality must not be relaxed. The plan of inverting the 
work for successive coats may be used. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 

Lesson 4 











214 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


Begin the recitation by calling attention to the details of posi¬ 
tion. This lesson is the same as lesson 1, except as to size. The 
direct compact continuous oval should now be made three ruled 
spaces of the paper in height. The purpose of this is to increase 
the reserve power and range of the movement. With increased 
range of movement it will be found that the hand with the pen 
can move about over the writing area with greater ease. This is 
a valuable acquisition, since ease in writing is altogether a matter 
of movement. It has been found that, as a rule, reserve power in 
movement is proportional to the range. This means that the 
greater the range the greater the reserve power. It is the reserve 
power that determines the degree of ease with which writing is 
done. A person who uses all his movement power in writing 


necessarily writes with difficulty. On the other hand a person 
who has much more movement power than he actually uses (re¬ 
serve power) can write with ease. The large oval is the best 
elementary drill for developing range and reserve power in the 
movement. In this grade it should be well mastered at the three- 
space size, and much can be gained by practicing it four spaces 
high. With the increased size special attention must be given to 
the line quality, as there will be a tendency, with many pupils, to 
grip the penholders and thus make the lines heavy. All lines must 
be fine and smooth. It is a good plan to turn the paper about oc¬ 
casionally and work from opposite ends. The count is 10. The 
work must be compact, smooth, uniform. The movement must be 
rapid. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 5 

i 



Refer, as may be necessary, to the details of position. The pur¬ 
pose of this lesson (5) is the same as for the preceding (to in¬ 
crease the range and reserve power) and also to further develop 
the pupil’s power to write on a uniform slant. The movements 
must all be forward-backward with the slight swing outward as 
the hand goes forward, and inward as it moves backward. The 
paper must be held exactly the same in relation to the arm as for 
making the oval drill. This drill must never be made by turning 
the paper and swinging the hand sidewise. Also, there must never 


be anything held at the edges to make them straight. What is re¬ 
quired is a vigorous forward-backward movement, made at the 
same rate of speed as used in the large oval drill. The count is 
also the same as in the large oval. The work of increasing the 
range of movement is in making the skin muscles at the arm rest 
stretch more. It is possible for mature persons to make these skin 
muscles stretch enough to reach six or eight spaces, and some can 
reach more still. The arm must never slip on the desk and must 
never be lifted from the desk while practicing, because either 



4 - 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


215 


would defeat the purpose of the drills—training the skin muscles cially in mere movement drills, to produce a feeling of warmth 
to stretch. The movement should always be rapid enough, espe- or heat in the arm. The lines must be fine. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 6 



Begin the recitation by reference to the essentials of good posi¬ 
tion. This lesson is called the small e and oval or connected capi¬ 
tal C drill. The chief characteristic that distinguishes it from the 
mere movement drills is, as explained in connection with lesson 7, 
that instead of retracing a given form, the form is repeated in 
a succession strung out toward the right, necessitating a pro¬ 
gressive glide in the movement. At first only two or three letters 
should be connected without stopping, so the movement may be¬ 
come accustomed to the correct form, without subjecting it to the 
danger of running into a bad form, which is likely to occur after 
the first few letters for a time. The number should, however, be 
increased as rapidly as the movement is prepared to extend into 


additional letters, until as many as possible can be made with 
one continuous stroke, even to the full line. It is one of the 
best possible tests of good movement to make a full line of this 
drill with one continuous movement and without lifting the pen 
or changing the position of the arm or paper. The count for this 
drill is 10—making the long down strokes on the odd counts. The 
spacing must be accurate and the lines must be fine. The enclosed 
loop must be small, and it is placed near the right side of the outer 
oval. This is a detail that will call for a high degree of accuracy 
in movement control. The movement should be rapid enough to 
make smooth lines. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 7 






216 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


Take the usual precaution about the proper position. In this 
lesson the work begun in lesson 4, and continued in lesson 5; 
that is, increasing the range and reserve power of the arm move¬ 
ment, is extended. It is the indirect compact continuous oval 
drill, made three ruled spaces of the paper in height. The count 
is 10. The movement must be rapid enough to heat up the arm, 
at least for a time, so it will stretch the skin muscles at the arm 
rest. If the movement is trained to work easily in making the 
three-space oval it will add much to the ease in doing ordinary 
writing. It is very important that the arm be kept down on the 
desk, and not permitted to slip in practicing this drill. The all 
important thing is to make the skin muscles stretch and this would 
not be done if the arm were lifted up, or allowed to slip. The lines 


must be light. It will seem more difficult to make light lines in 
the large than in the small oval, because there will be a ten¬ 
dency to grip the holder more. But constant care must be exer¬ 
cised to keep the muscles relaxed; hold the penholder lightly, and 
make fine lines. Fine lines indicate refinement of the touch. The 
ovals must be uniform and the work very compact. It is a good 
plan to turn the paper occasionally and work from the opposite 
end. The finished ovals should be clear, free from muddy spots, 
smooth, and really beautiful. If the lines are as fine as they 
should be the finished ovals will look almost transparent. The 
work will look more as though made with a very fine brush than 
with a pen. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 8 



Give the necessary attention to the position, to begin with. This 
is a movement drill designed to test the ability to apply the in¬ 
creased range of movement developed in the large oval and 
straight line drills to more complex forms. At first only three or 
four letters should be joined without lifting the pen or stopping; 
but the number should be added to as rapidly as possible until the 
full line can be made with one stroke and a continuous, rapid 
movement. The details to be noted especially are: To make a 
broad turn at the top; to make the minute loop in the down stroke 
very small and at right angles to the slant of the letter ( left end 
turned upward) ; to make the bottom loop small, without a sharp 
point, or angle, and flat on the line ( not turned up at the left end ) 

GRADE VII, 
Lesso 

Begin by directing attention to the details of position. This les¬ 
son is for the same purpose as the preceding; but carries the 



and to make the two parts of the down stroke slanted like the 
oblique straight line drill. To test the slant a line should be 
drawn across the backs of the two parts of the down stroke. The 
spacing must be noted. About the same number as given in the 
copy should be made for the full line. The count for this drill is 
3. The 1 is on the cross stroke at the bottom, or the long up stroke, 
and the 2 and 3 on the two parts of the down stroke. The move¬ 
ment should be rapid, but not as rapid as used in the oval. The 
lines must be fine. It should be remembered that the purpose of 
this drill is movement training. Making it with the fingers is a 
waste of time. The form should be criticised with the view of 
guiding the movement more exactly. 

BOOK VII 
9 

training farther. The form is the same as in the preeding drill, 
with the connectng oval added. The connecting oval surrounds 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


217 




the minute loop in such a manner as to cross the stroke above 
and below the loop, each at the middle, and also divides the space 
at the left of the minute loop at the middle. This exactness need 
not be absolutely required but should be understood by the pupil 
and aimed at. At first only a few letters should be joined, and 
while only a few are made connected, very great care should be 
given to the details of form. Then as the movement becomes 
more and more accustomed to the form, letters should be added, 
until the full line can be made with a continuous, rapid move¬ 
ment. The count is 4 — the 4 falling on the connecting oval. This 
is a test of the arm movement that can hardly be surpassed for 


bringing out all the phases of the capital letter movement. That 
it may seem difficult is not a reason for slighting it or giving it 
up; but is the best of reasons for mastering it. The movement 
that is so well under control as to be able to make line after line 
of this drill (each running entirely across the page) rapidly, and 
with a smooth, continuous stroke, may be assumed to have reached 
the stage when plain penmanship may be said to be practically 
mastered. All lines must be fine. Criticisms must be directed 
against many details that are likely to be made wrong by most 
pupils. The broad turns at the tops; the flat loops at the bot¬ 
toms ; the minute loops at the middle, need close attention. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 10 



Give the necessary attention to the details of position. This 
drill, while using a capital letter and the oval movement, also 
uses the straight down stroke feature which is very prominent in 
small letters. The drill is, therefore, helpful in training the move¬ 
ment to make the transition from the capital letter to the small 
letter movement. The three down strokes in the letter are straight, 
quite close together, and slanted like the oblique straight line drill. 
Each successive part shows a decrease in height. The connecting 
oval is half above and half below the line, and is slanted down¬ 
ward toward the right. At first only two or three letters should 
be made with one continuous stroke, and during this time great 
care should be given to the form and to the elements of move¬ 
ment. As the movement becomes accustomed to the form, more 


letters should be added. The full purpose of the drill should not 
be considered as having been accomplished until the full line can 
be made rapidly, with a continuous stroke, and without shifting 
the arm or paper. To have to break the drill into several sections 
is due to too limited range in the movement; and the necessity 
of doing so can be overcome by practicing more on the large oval 
drill. It should be clearly understood by teacher and pupils that 
the purpose of this and other drills is to develop and train the 
arm movement. Making the drills with the finger movement is, 
therefore, a waste of time. The count for this drill is 4—1, 2 and 
3 on the straight down strokes, and 4 on the connecting oval. All 
the lines must be fine. 



218 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 11 



Direct attention to the details of position. In this drill there 
are embodied the features of movement and form brought out in 
the preceding drill, and also other details which will require spe¬ 
cial attention. Changing from one letter to another without mak¬ 
ing a break in the movement, or without even hesitating, calls 
for increased movement power. This should be thoroughly learned. 
The connecting ovals are all alike. Special attention must be given 
to the stroke following the Y, which must be a regular curve. It 
is a common error to make a stop at the top of the second part of 
the V, and an angular joining. This must not be permitted. The 
third section is comprised of three M’s, and is not to be made a 
repetition of the other sections. This is often overlooked by the 
pupil, because he observes and thinks too little. 


It is also a common error to make the oval between the V and 
U extend too high. All connecting ovals extend half below the 
line. The spacing must be given careful attention. The down 
strokes in the M and N are straight; in the V and first part of the 
U they are compound curves, and the last down stroke in the U is 
a left curve. The movement must be trained to act rapidly and 
smoothly. All tendency to make breaks should be overcome. 
The lines must be fine. Again it should be emphasized that this 
is an arm movement drill and that nothing can be gained by mak¬ 
ing the lesson with the finger movement. All pupils will not be 
able to make all drills equally well; but each should use the cor¬ 
rect movement and with it make the forms as accurate as possible. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 12 



Make an examination of position, and see that all assume it in 
all details. This second part of this lesson is called the ratchet 
drill. This is the foundation drill for learning the small letter' 
movement. It is of as great importance in developing the peculiar 
phase of the arm movement required to write the small letters 
successfully, as is the compact- continuous oval drill in developing 
the arm movement at the beginning. It should be practiced as the 
full embodiment of the small letter movement. The ovals should 


be made to the count of 10, given at the speed used in lesson 1; 
that is, rapidly. The second part of the drill is also made to the 
count of 10; but the rate of speed changes abruptly and very de¬ 
cidedly. The change is like changing from the motion of skating 
to that of walking. In this second part the successive parts are 
made at about the rate steps are taken in walking rapidly. There 
must be a quick up-and-down movement, and a stop for each of 
the successive parts. This is absolutely necessary to be able to 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


219 


make the down strokes straight. Unless they are made straight 
and with the correct form of movement there can be no gain 
from the drill. The rule for applying the small letter movement 
is this: Make a quick up-and-down movement and stop for each 
straight down stroke that rests on the writing line. No lesson can 


have so great an effect for good on small letter writing as the 
second part of this, if properly practiced, and thoroughly learned. 
It should be reverted to again and again along with future lessons 
to give it every opportunity to produce the best possible results. 
All lines must be light. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 13 



Take full note of all the details of position to begin the recita¬ 
tion. In the l drill the small letter movement finds its easiest 
application to actually making a letter. The disjoined letters at 
the beginning of the line are to show the necessity of stopping at 
the bottom of the straight down strokes. The connected letters 
should be made in sections of ten and to the count of 10. Each 
letter must be made with a quick up-and-down movement and a 
perfect stop at the bottom. This is the distinctively small letter 
movement. The importance of mastering this special phase of 
the arm movement will be appreciated when it is considered that 
of the forty down strokes in the small letters, thirty-two are 
straight. The rolling or spiral movement used in making most 


of the capitals cannot be used in making the small letters that 
have straight down strokes, without the special modification 
specified here. The movement must be the true arm movement, 
and the successive movements must all be made quickly—hardly 
more than an instantaneous motion; but the stops give the suc¬ 
cession of movements a close resemblance to steps in walking. 
The letters must be uniform in height and spacing. The slant 
must be the same for each pupil as his oblique straight line drill. 
The lines must be fine. This drill will have a very decided effect 
for good on nearly all the small letters if well mastered with 
the true small letter movement. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 14 


Give the necessary attention to position before commencing 
work on the lesson. The purpose of this lesson is to further de¬ 
velop the small letter movement, undertaken in lesson 12, and 
continued in lesson 13. These three lessons are of such im¬ 


portance in learning the small letter movement that they should 
be reverted to again and again as preliminary or supplementary 
drill. The importance of mastering the small letter movement will 
be still more fully appreciated when it is remembered that there 



220 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


are perhaps two to three hundred small letters used to every 
capital; and that in the small letters there are five times as many 
straight down strokes as curved. It is a good plan to work for 
a few minutes on lessons 12, 13 and 14, or one of them, at the 
beginning of every writing period in which small letters are to 
be practiced. In practicing this lesson, as with the two preceding 
lessons, the correct movement must be used or nothing can be 
gained. To make this drill with the finger movement is of little 
if any value. The true arm movement must be used, and it must 
be applied in the form designated the small letter movement. This 
peculiar phase must be definitely understood as being like steps 


in walking; not like the glide in skating. It is like the ratchet 
bearing; not the ball bearing in machinery. There must be 
a quick up-and-down movement and a stop, for each straight 
down stroke that rests on the writing line. The count for this 
drill is 3. The best arrangement of the counts is to use 1 and 2 
on the two parts of the u, and 3 on the 1. In this way the 3 may 
be accented slightly, to indicate the longer movement required for 
the 1. Each count must be given quick and sharp. The time be¬ 
tween the counts must be such as to emphasize the stops in the 
movement. The lines must be fine. Every down stroke must be 
straight and on the slant of the oblique straight line drill. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 15 






Check up on the details of position. In the remaining lessons 
in this book results will be determined by two factors, viz.: How 
well the pupil has mastered the arm movement, as such, and how 
well he has mastered the special phase of the arm movement 
called the small letter movement. With good control of the move¬ 
ment the following lessons will need attention chiefly in matters 
of form. If, however, the movement is not good, then strict at¬ 
tention must be given to it as well as to form. The sentences given 
in the following copies have been constructed with the view of 
giving special opportunities to use the small letter movement. It 
has also been the aim to express in the sentences, thoughts that 
must be appreciated by every one who would learn to write 
well. The present lesson expresses the fundamental penmanship 


thought for this grade. If the pupil is not using the arm move¬ 
ment, he has not learned the fundamental thing in the course; and 
of the teacher it must be said, he has not taught the pupil the 
fundamental thing. No one has taught a thing, unless some one 
has learned that thing. 

All the down strokes in this lesson, except six, are straight. All 
the small letter groups are represented — (s and r, medial; t and 
p, semi-extended; 1 and h, extended, and all the rest, minimum). 
The extended small letters, are as high as the capitals. The top 
of the p (to the line, and omitting the lower part of the oval) 
and the final t are the same form. The retrace at the top of v and 
o must be noted. Every word has a final up stroke. All move¬ 
ments must be rapid and all lines must be light. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


221 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 16 



Begin by calling attention to the details of position. All the 
groups of small letters are represented in this sentence and all 
the down strokes in the small letters, except six, are straight. 
The sentence expresses a thought of fundamental importance in 
learning to write and gives an opportunity to practice the small 
letter movement to advantage. The d in the word should may be 
finished with a down stroke, making the long down stroke curved 
instead of straight, and omitting the final up stroke, as used in les¬ 
son 20. The loop and oval in the d are the same as the correspond¬ 
ing parts of the p, inverted. The final t must be noted. The loops 


of 1, h, b and f (above the line) are alike and as high as the A. 
The finishing of the o, v and b must be made with care. The 
spacing between the joined small letters must be long and must 
be made with the glide. The pen must be held very lightly and 
all the lines must be fine. Uniformity in slant must be noted, and 
the slant must be the same for each pupil as in his oblique straight 
line drill. Every movement must be rapid. The page effect must 
be pleasing. The heading must be written with as much care as 
the lesson work. Criticisms should be directed against all errors 
of form and movement. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 17 



Take due account of all the details of position. The thought ex¬ 
pressed in this lesson must be impressed on the pupils and they 
must obey the command, if real progress is to be made in learn¬ 
ing t,o write. This sentence has been arranged with the view to 
giving a good opportunity to practice the small letter movement. 
Only five curved down strokes are used. All the groups of small 
letters are represented. The tick strokes are used in the w, o and 
v. The h is the same form as y, inverted. Note the long spaces 


between the joined letters, requiring the glide in the movement, 
and the absence of vertical spaces between the words, except slight 
ones where the initial strokes are omitted from the a’s in an and 
arm. It should be remembered that when an oval small letter 
(a, c, d, g, o, q) is used by itself or at the beginning of a word 
the introductory stroke is omitted. All the movements must be 
rapid. All the lines must be light. All practice should contribute 
something toward real training. There can be no real training 



222 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


unless the process be correct. The correct process requires that 
the movements be of the arm ; that they be rapid enough to make 
all strokes smooth; that the pen be held lightly enough to make 


fine lines, and that the small letter movement be used for making 
the required straight down strokes in the small letters. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 18 



Call attention to the requirements of good position. Impress 
the pupils with the thought expressed in the sentence used in this 
lesson. Each one must be held to personal accountability, as far 
as possible, in considering his movement. This sentence, like the 
preceding, has been arranged with the view to giving a good op¬ 
portunity to develop the small letter movement. Only seven down 
strokes in the small letters are curved. It is only by making the 
others straight that good work can be done, and it is only by 
making the straight down strokes (above the line) with the 
true small letter movement that real improvement .in movement 
power for writing can be developed. Making any of these lessons 


with the finger movement cannot add to the movement power for 
writing. It can only help in perfecting the concepts of form. 
Pupils who did not receive proper training in form in the primary 
grades must now learn both form and movement. The movement 
must not be neglected for form, but both must be carried forward 
together. If the small letter work takes on a sprawling appear¬ 
ance it is because the capital letter movement is being used. The 
straight down strokes in the small letters require that the small 
letter movement be used. The glide between the joined small let¬ 
ters must be considered important. All lines must be light. The 
final t must be noted. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 19 



Begin the recitation by calling attention to the details of posi¬ 
tion. The sentence used for this lesson expresses a thought that 
must be appreciated by teacher and pupils, if progress in the sub¬ 
ject is to be made. Movement is the medium through which the 


concepts are expressed. If the medium is poor the expression will, 
necessarily, be poor. It is a very important law that to express 
any concept, the means of expression must he adequate to the 
purpose. In writing the concept is, primarily, form; and, sec- 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


223 


ondarily, relation between forms. This relationship involves the 
idea of continuity and of rate of speed. Movement thus becomes 
the expression of form and the use of the form —continuity, rate, 
speed. If this understanding can be brought to the understanding 
of the pupil, much will have been accomplished. This lesson is 
especially adapted to the work of improving the glide which 

GRADE VII, 


carries the hand from letter to letter, and which makes the con¬ 
spicuous spaces between the joined letters. The final t’s must be 
noted. The t’s, d and p are the same in height, and as high as the 
second part of the M. Only five down strokes in the small letters 
of this sentence are curved. The small letter movement must 
be kept almost constantly in use. The lines must be fine. 

BOOK VII 


Lesson 20 



Give the necessary attention to details of position. This sen¬ 
tence is designed to emphasize the important glide feature of the 
movement, so often referred to. The final t and final d’s must be 
noted. The t’s, d’s and p are the same in height, and not as high 
as the h’s, l’s and L. Ten down strokes in the small letters are 
curved, and all the others are straight. The likeness between the 
loop and oval in p and d (inverted) should be considered. It 
should be noted how much smaller the loop in d is than the loops 
in 1 and h. The movements must all be rapid. A slow, dragging 
movement cannot bring development. The pens must be held 
lightly, so the muscles may be known to be relaxed, and so the 


lines will all be light. The full page effect must have close con¬ 
sideration. The heading must be of as good quality as the sen¬ 
tence work. The margins, spacings, slant, uniformity of letters 
and line quality must be watched with a critical eye. All signs 
of scribbling must be condemned and no page must be given a 
passing grade that does not show that it has been prepared with 
care and with an understanding of what is required. If the lines 
are too heavy, the cause must be discovered and corrected. In¬ 
telligent criticism must play a very large part in the work. Doing 
a thing incorrectly must be looked upon as dangerous, if not alto¬ 
gether a waste of time and energy. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 21 


Take due account of the details of position, first of all. In the 
sentence of this lesson is given a warning that should be heeded. 
No finger movement should be used in any of the practice work 
in this grade. If the forms cannot be made well with the arm 
movement, the remedy should be found in further improving the 
movement, and not in abandoning it and resorting the finger 
movement. The purpose of these lessons is to constantly improve 


the arm movement. Every letter should be looked upon as a 
drill for the arm movement. The details of form should be 
studied and closely criticised, to the end that the arm movement 
may be made to perform with greater exactness. At the same 
time the movement must be rapid enough to be smooth. Move¬ 
ment habits can be brought about through rapid, but not through 
slow action. The many straight down strokes in this lesson call 



224 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



for the small letter movement. Pupils who are inclined to scribble 
or work carelessly must be watched with extra vigilance, and all 
evidences of such work must be called to their attention, and 
made the ground for rejecting the specimens. If only painstaking 


effort — effort made according to all directions given up to this 
stage of the course — is understood by pupils to be acceptable, few, 
if any, will try to secure passing grades on work improperly done. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 

Lesson 22 



Call attention to the details of position. The sentence used in 
this lesson expresses the aim of all penmanship practice—that of 
training the writing “machinery” to obey the mind. The mind 
conceives the forms of the letters. It must be taught to conceive 
these forms accurately, which is largely the work of the lower 
grades. After the form is accurately and clearly visualized in 
the mind, the great work of training the writing nerves to guide 
the writing muscles in expressing these forms must be under¬ 
taken. All advanced penmanship practice is, fundamentally, for 
this purpose. It is a waste of time at this stage to neglect the 
chief purpose in practice; that is, neglect the movement. Only 



eight curved down strokes are used in this sentence—all the 
others being straight. This means that the small letter movement 
must play a large part in practicing the lesson. The final d’s 
must be noted. The glide between the joined letters must be 
given proper consideration. The lines must be fine, which means 
that the pens must be held lightly. There must be sufficient speed 
in all movements to effect some improvement in the movement. 
Movement must be remembered as the factor that makes writing 
easy. To serve this purpose it must be mastered. Movement 
mastery cannot result from slighting it, or from side stepping, or 
dodging its requirements. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 23 


Begin by directing' attention to the details of position. The sen¬ 
tence used in this lesson further emphasizes the thought expressed 
in lesson 22. The writing nerves and muscles must be brought 


under complete obedience to the mind and made to work according 
to certain laws. This involves a training process in which mere 
movement drills are used first, because they are fundamental. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


193 


tions should be given with a more inflexible demand for their ful¬ 
fillment, than is possible in preceding grades. 

It is rare to find a pupil in the fourth grade who has so mas¬ 
tered the arm movement as to be able to use it in all his writing. 
The number of such pupils that will be found in a well taught 
class of, say, 30 pupils, will not exceed three or four; perhaps not 
more than 10 per cent. In the fifth grade there will not be found 
more than twice or three times this number, under equally favor¬ 
able conditions; that is, 20 to 30 per cent. In the sixth grade the 
number will usually be about twice that of the fifth grade, or 
about 50 per cent. 

The per cents mentioned in the foregoing paragraph do not refer 
to the number of pupils who can learn to use the arm movement 
in making mere movement drills, or even in making the capitals, 
and to an extent, the small letters. When considered in this lim¬ 
ited sense the per cents will run about as follows: Fourth grade, 
25 to 35 per cent; fifth grade, 40 to 50 per cent; sixth grade, 55 
to 65 per cent, while practically all will acquire some fundamental 
knowledge and use of the arm movement—a sufficient amount 
to make the undertaking practicable. 

After making the necessary explanations concerning position; 
noting especially that the penholder points between the elbow and 
the shoulder, and that the wrist and fleshy part of the hand 


which holds the pen are raised slightly above the desk, to prevent 
friction, commence on the first lesson. The ovals should be made 
two ruled spaces high, in the direction indicated by the arrow; 
very compact; with very fine lines, and uniform. This is called 
the direct compact continuous oval drill. It is made to the count 
of 10, repeated over and over without a break between the 1 and 
10, and rapidly—rapidly enough to produce a sensation of warmth 
or heat in the arm. 

The heading must be correct; using correct styles of letters, and 
with correct punctuation, correct spacing and with all light lines. 
The work on the page must be arranged as shown in the models 
in another part of the text. 

The practice of turning the paper should be used in this drill; 
that is, after making one coat of fine lines, not very compact, the 
paper should be turned (top toward the body) and a second coat 
made over the same work, from the opposite end, but with the 
same direction of movement. Then, turning the paper again, a 
third coat should be put on, and so on, until the paper becomes 
hidden under the mass of very fine lines. The movement should 
always be rapid. Turning the paper will give an opportunity to 
train the movement in accuracy by trying to always make the 
pen strike in the white spaces. No work with heavy, dragging 
or blurred lines should be accepted for passing grade. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 2 



The position should be the same for making lesson 2 as for 
practicing lesson 1. The position of the paper in relation to the 
arm, should have special attention. There must be no side swing 
in the movement in making this drill. This means that the paper 


must be held the same as for making the oval drill. This is called 
the oblique straight line drill. The chief purpose of the drill is 
to discover to the pupil his natural, individual slant, and make 
his movement act habitually on that slant. But it is also helpful 



194 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


in (level ojung range of movement and in improving all the ele¬ 
ments of the arm movement. The lines must be very fine. Fine 
lines indicate proper touch, which is very important in learning 
penmanship. There should never be anything held at the edges 
of this or any mere movement drill, to make the edges straight. 
The greatest possible care should be given to the matter of keep¬ 
ing the slant uniform. The drill should be made two ruled spaces 
high as a regular class requirement, and on the final specimen for 
grading; but it will be advantageous to practice it three spaces in 
height if this can be reached without slipping or raising the arm. 
The count for this drill is the same as for number 1—10. The 
counts are all on the down strokes, and should be given rapidly. 
The movement on mere movement drills, at the beginning of the 
practice, should be rapid enough to produce a sensation of warmth 
or heat in the arm. In preparing the final specimen, which is to 
be graded, the movement should be slower than in preliminary or 
preparation drill; but should always be quite rapid. 

The details of the heading must have constant attention. No 
specimen should be given a passing grade unless the heading has 
been written with the correct styles of letters and is otherwise ac¬ 
cording to the specifications. Careless woi’k should never be ac¬ 
cepted. Scribbling should be considered as inexcusable as im¬ 
proper language. Scribbling is the slang of writing. It is to 
writing what vulgarity is to speech and should be looked upon 
with as little favor. Coarse, heavy lines should not be counte¬ 
nanced. They indicate excessive gripping, and lack of refinement 
in the touch. Soiled and untidy papers should be rejected. It 
should be impressed upon the pupils with perfect clearness that 
all specimens submitted for grading must be on clean, smooth 
paper; must be in fine lines; must have the heading correct in all 
details; must show a ideasing arrangment on the page, and must 
give satisfactory evidence of having been prepared with great 
care. 


Normal pupils in the sixth grade will show marked tendencies 
to enjoy physical action and sensation, due to the period of physi¬ 
cal development now being experienced, and intensive arm move¬ 
ment drill will usually delight them. They can be successfully 
appealed to to prepare extra pages of mere movement drills for 
display uses, and this should be done. Success in establishing the 
arm movement habit depends upon a few simple laws which should 
be kept in mind. The same movement should be repeated as often 
as possible, with the least possible variation in form, and in as 
short a time as possible. It is impossible to practice mere move¬ 
ment drills too much. The more they are practiced correctly, the 
finer the line quality will become; the more uniform and compact 
the drill will become, and the more pleasing will be the final prod¬ 
uct. All of which will mean that the movement is approaching the 
stage when it will respond to commands with a promptness and 
precision that will make it possible to execute good writing with 
ease and rapidity. 

It must he remembered that the only purpose of the arm move¬ 
ment is to make writing easy. It cannot perform this function 
until it has been trained to a point of high responsiveness to the 
mind. This training can come only through proper practice. Proper 
practice means that the speed must be sufficiently rapid to pro¬ 
duce the necessary destruction and rebuilding in the muscle and 
nerve substance in the writing machinery; that there must he a 
constant purpose to guide the movement in a definite course 
(form), and that there must be sufficient repetition to establish 
the habit of specific performance. 

Haphazard, indefinite practice is worse than mere loss; it is 
detrimental. Penmanship practice should be intelligently done. 
The teacher should have a definite purpose in view in directing the 
pupils’ efforts. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 3 

The necessity of assuming and maintaining the correct position ing the grade with the grades given on lesson specimens at the 

can be impressed upon pupils by grading the position and averag- close of the grading period. This lesson is called the indirect com - 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


195 



pact continuous oval drill. It should be two ruled spaces high and 
in the direction indicated by the arrow. The count is 10, repeated 
over and over without making a break between the 1 and 10. The 
movement should be rapid enough to cause a sensation of warmth 
or heat in the writing arm. The lines must all be made as fine 
as possible, to promote relaxation and touch. The work must be 
compact and uniform. The suggestion of turning the paper for 
successive coats, as explained for lesson 1, should be used if found 
advantageous. The movement must be watched to see that it 


embodies the following essentials: The arm must never be per¬ 
mitted to slip on the desk, and must never he lifted from the 
desk while practicing. The wrist and fleshy part of the hand must 
be raised slightly above the desk to prevent friction. The little 
finger, acting as a gliding rest for the hand, must move with the 
pen. The penholder must point between the elbow and the 
shoulder. The first joint of the first finger, as it rests on the 
penholder, must not be bent downward; but must be held in an 
arched position. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 4 



Take due note of the elements of correct position in beginning 
the recitation. This drill is called the conic (or conical) compact 
oval. It has the features of light lines, uniformity (tapering) and 
compactness emphasized in connection with lessons 1 and 3, but 
has the added characteristic of the deminishing (or increasing) 
diameter from one end to the other. A fine line may be ruled with 
a pencil for the diagonal edge. This drill may well be practiced 
at one, two and three spaces, but the final specimen submitted for 
grading should be two ruled spaces in height. It will be seen that 
this drill involves a movement graduated along such a scale as to 
cover all letters (as to size) from the minimum small letters to 
the largest capitals (Y and J), when practiced to fill two spaces. 


It is one of the very best forms of mere movement drill and 
should lead to much beautiful page work. 

The speed should be as already often mentioned: that is, ‘suf¬ 
ficiently rapid to produce the feeling of warmth in the arm. After 
the arm movement has become quite thoroughly mastered much 
can be gained by practicing the mere movement drills at a mod¬ 
erate speed, giving increased attention to uniformity and mere 
form ; but at the beginning, when the purpose is to first create 
this power, the speed must be rapid.' The attention to fine line 
quality must not be relaxed. The plan of inverting the work for 
successive coats may be used. 








196 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 5 



Correct any defects in position found in the class before begin-re 
ning the work of the recitation. This drill is called the direct re¬ 
traced link oval. It should be made one ruled space in height; 
uniform in all respects; with very light lines, and with the ovals 
overlapping about one-third. It is also good to have pupils make . 
this drill two spaces high, if time permits; but the final specimen 
for grading should be made one space in height. Each oval should 
be retraced in the direction indicated by the arrow and not less 
than ten times. The count is 10. If the lines are sufficiently 
light and the work is uniform it will improve the final effect to 

GRADE VI, 
Lesso 


;race each oval twenty times. The movement should be rapid. 

It may be slightly slower than used in the compact oval drills, but 
must be rapid enough to produce smooth lines, and be a real help 
in developing movement power. Merely making ovals is not to 
be the purpose. The purpose is to make movement, and the re¬ 
sult on the paper is to show the quality of the movement thus 
made. A slow, dragging movement is of no value. There must be 
spirit in the movement. The touch must be light. The spacing 
must be accurate. The finished page should present a pleasing 
appearance. 

BOOK VI 
n 6 



Note the elements of correct position. Does the penholder point 
between the elbow and shoulder? Is the wrist raised from the 
desk? This drill is called the indirect retraced link oval. It must 
be made in the direction indicated by the arrow. The form, size 
and slant must be the same as for the preceding drill (5). This 
means that the ovals are to be two ruled spaces in height; over¬ 
lap about one-third, and have the slant of the oblique straight line 
drill. The movement must be rapid enough to make smooth lines 


and add to the movement power. The lines must be made the 
finest it is possible to produce. Thick, muddy looking lines must 
be improved by using better materials or by relaxing the muscles 
—especially the grip on the holder. The speed must be rapid 
enough to produce smooth lines—free from angularities and all 
shaky effects. The count is 10, and if the count can be re¬ 
peated for the same oval it is a good indication. The smoothness 
with which the arm acts is the real test of the good that is being 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


197 


accomplished in these mere movement drills. A smooth, uniform, 
light, spirited movement will produce work that reflects these 
qualities. On the other hand if the work looks coarse, tangled, 


muddy and clumsy it is certain that the movement still retains 
these defects. This is true because every stroke is the direct re¬ 
sult of the movement and manner of holding the pen. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 7 




Check up the details of position, noting carefully the position of 
the penholder and that it is held very lightly. This lesson takes 
the step advancing from the mere movement to the capital letter 
movement work. The count is 10—the odd counts on the connect¬ 
ing strokes. The first and most important feature embodied in 
the new kind of work is that the repetition is not over the same 
outline, as in mere movement drills; but a succession of outlines 
are made. In other words, instead of making the movement 
revolutions retrace one outline many times, the new drill requires 
that the successive movement revolutions be strung out toward the 
right. This sounds simple enough but requires a considerable in¬ 
crease in movement power to compass it successfully. At first 


only two or three or four letters should be joined with the one 
continuous movement. But letters should be added as the move¬ 
ment becomes accustomed to the drill, until at least a half line 
can be made with a rapid, continuous movement. Pupils who are 
able to make the movement carry throughout the full line, with¬ 
out stopping, lifting the pen or shifting the position of the arm or 
paper, will have added very much to their movement power. The 
lines must be very fine. The loop at the beginning of the letters 
(after the first) is larger than the one at the close of the letter. 
The minute loop made by the overlapping of the initial and final 
loops must be slanted the same as the letter. The spacing must be 
studied. The letters are a little less than a ruled space in height. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 

Lesson 8 



should be connected without stopping, so the movement may be¬ 
come accustomed to the correct form, without subjecting it to the 
danger of running into a bad form, which is likely to occur after 
the first few letters for a time. The number should, however, be 
increased as rapidly as the movement is prepared to extend into 
additional letters, until as many as possible can be made with one 
continuous stroke, even to the full line. It is one of the best 


Begin the recitation by reference to the essentials of good posi¬ 
tion. This lesson is called the small e and oval or connected 
capital G drill. The chief characteristic that distinguishes it from 
the mere movement drills is, as explained in connection with lesson 
7, that instead of retracing a given form, the form is repeated 
in a succession strung out toward the right, necessitating a pro¬ 
gressive glide in the movement. At first only two or three letters 



198 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


possible tests of good movement to make a full line of this drill 
with one continuous movement and without lifting the pen or 
changing the position of the arm or paper. The count for this 
drill is 10 — making the long down strokes on the even counts. The 
spacing must be accurate and the lines must be fine. The en¬ 


closed loop must be small, and it is placed near the right side of 
the outer oval. This is a detail that will call for a high degree 
of accuracy in movement control. The movement should be rapid 
enough to make smooth lines. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 9 



Give the necessary attention to position. This drill is called the 
extended M drill. It has three important features that must be 
noted: All the down strokes are straight; the height of the suc¬ 
cessive parts decreases gradually, and the ividth of the spacing 
between the successive parts diminishes uniformly as each sec¬ 
tion advances. Only the most highly developed movement will 
be able to embody these three features in the drill to a high de¬ 
gree ; but the purpose of all the movement drills presented is to 
develop movement power, and with proper application beautiful 
work can be produced by the average pupil in this grade. The 
count for this drill is 10—making the down strokes on the counts. 
The counting must take into consideration the stops that must be 


made at the bottom of the straight down strokes, and should be 
sharp and w r ell accented, but not too rapid in succession. A more 
prolonged pause must be made between the 10 and the 1 for the 
next section, to give the necessary time for making the connect¬ 
ing oval. The teacher should practice making this drill with the 
counting, to learn how to count to the best advantage. Each move¬ 
ment must be quick—carrying the pen up and down for one part. 
The pen must come to a perfect stop at the bottom of each straight 
down stroke to prevent making a loop at the joining. The move¬ 
ments, up and down, should be made about as rapidly in succes¬ 
sion aS steps in rapid walking. The lines must be fine. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 10 



Make an examination of position, and see that all assume it in movement. It is of as great importance in developing the peculiar 
all details. The second part of this lesson is called the ratchet phase of the arm movement required to write the small letters 
drill. This is the foundation drill for learning the small letter successfully, as is the compact continuous oval drill in developing 





THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


199 


the arm movement at the beginning. Lesson 9 was a preparatory 
drill, for beginning work on the small letter movement. This 
drill must be practiced as the full embodiment of the small letter 
movement. The ovals should be made to the count of 10, given 
at the speed used in lessons 5 and 6; that is, rapidly. The second 
part of the drill is also made to the count of 10; but the rate of 
speed changes abruptly and very decidedly. The change is like 
changing from the motion of skating to that of walking. In this 
second part the successive parts are made at about the rate steps 


are taken in walking rapidly. There must be a quick up and 
down movement, and a stop for each of the successive parts. This 
is absolutely necessary to be able to make the down strokes 
straight. Unless they are made straight and with the correct 
form of movement there can be no gain from the drill. The rule 
for applying the small letter movement is this: Make a quick 
up-and-down movement and stop for each straight down stroke 
that rests on the writing line. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 11 



Take full note of all the details of position to begin the recita¬ 
tion. In the l drill the small letter movement finds its easiest ap¬ 
plication to actually making a letter. The disjoined letters at the 
beginning of the line are to show the necessity of stopping at the 
bottom of the straight down strokes. The connected letters should 
be made in sections of ten and to the count of 10. Each letter 
must be made with a quick up-and-down movement and a perfect 
stop at the bottom. This is the distinctive small letter movement. 
The importance of mastering this special phase of the arm move¬ 
ment will be appreciated when it is considered that of the forty 
down strokes in the small letters, thirty-two are straight. The roll¬ 
ing or spiral movement used in making most of the capitals cannot 


be used in making the small letters that have straight down 
strokes, without the special modification specified here. The move¬ 
ment must be the true arm movement, and the successive move¬ 
ments must all be made quickly — each practically an instan¬ 
taneous motion; but the stops give the succession of movements a 
close resemblance to steps in walking. The letters must be uni¬ 
form in height and spacing. The slant must be the same for each 
pupil as his oblique straight line drill. The lines must be fine. 
This drill will have a very decided effect for good on nearly all 
the small letters if well mastered with the true small letter move¬ 
ment. 


GRADE VI 
Lesson 

Call attention to the details of position in beginning the recita¬ 
tion. Note the positions of the penholders. They must point be¬ 
tween the elbows and shoulders. The wrists must be raised above 
the desks to prevent friction. The l’s in this drill must be made 


BOOK VI 
12 

with the true small letter movement, described in connection with 
lessons ten and eleven; but the o’s are made with the miniature 
capital letter movement; that is, the capital letter movement on 
a very small scale. Each 1 must be made with a quick up-and- 



200 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



down motion and a perfect stop at the bottom of the straight down 
stroke. The process may be compared to the steps in walking. 
The ten l’s are to be made to the count of 10—quick, sharp counts, 
with definite pauses between them. The o’s are also made to 
the count of 10, and the time and rate should be the same in the 
o’s as in the l’s. At first it will be all right for the pupil to lift 
the pen at the finish of the tenth 1 and readjust his position before 
t making the o’s. But it should be the aim to so master the move¬ 


ment that the entire line may be written with one continuous 
stroke and without changing the position of the arm or paper. 
The chief purpose in practicing the o’s is to learn to use the glide 
in the arm movement. This is a very important feature in all 
arm movement writing. The glide must be mastered to produce 
uniform spaces and follow a straight course. All lines must be 
fine. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 13 



Check up the details of position. In this drill the same features 
are present as in lesson twelve, except that the spacing between 
the o’s is shorter. The spacing between the l’s is the same as in 
lesson twelve. The count is 10 for each section of o’s and for the 
l’s—making three counts of 10 for the full line. In the l’s the 
true small letter movement must be used. This requires that for 
each 1 there must be made a quick up-and-down motion and at 
the bottom of the straight down stroke a stop. The true arm 
movement must be used ; but it is not spiral in form as used in 
the compact continuous oval and in many of the capital letters. 
At first the pupil may lift the pen and readjust the position of 
the paper or arm at the end of the first set of o’s and again at 


the end of the section of l’s, but as soon as the movement can 
be sufficiently developed the pen should not be lifted until the end 
of the l’s has been reached, and with further development it 
should be the aim to complete the line without lifting the pen 
or changing the position of the arm or paper. The purpose is to 
develop movement power. This cannot be done unless continuous 
effort be made to make the movement perform new tasks and 
operate with increased accuracy. The l’s are crossed at the height 
of i. The o’s are closed at the tops. The movement must have 
the distinct glide between letters—especially between the o’s 
Finger movement should not be permitted. The lines must all be 
fine. 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


201 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 14 


O - V - ~V - —&-■ -- "V~ 


Begin the recitation by calling attention to the details of posi¬ 
tion. In this drill the same features are embodied as in lessons 
twelve and thirteen—the true small letter movement in the l’s; 
the miniature capital letter movement in the o’s, and the glide 
between the o’s. The l’s are all to be made the height of capitals, 
which is slightly less than a ruled space. The o’s must be closed 
at the tops. The spacing must be accurate. At first it will be all 
right to lift the pen at the end of the section of o’s but the move¬ 
ment should be developed to the point where the full line can be 
made without lifting the pen or shifting the position of the arm 
or paper. The count of 10 should be used with each section. The 

GRADE VI 
Lessc 



quick up-and-down and stop features of the small letter movement 
must be distinctly employed in each 1. The pen should never be 
lifted before the ten o’s are completed and they should be spaced 
apart far enough to fill the line as far as shown in the copy. It 
is the spacing that is of most importance, because it develops the 
glide in the movement. The l’s must have straight down strokes 
on the slant of the pupil’s oblique straight line drill. The height, 
slant and spacing must be uniform. Thorough mastery of this 
and the four preceding drills will mean very much in the mastery 
of good writing in small letters. All lines must be fine. 

BOOK VI 
v 15 



Take a careful account of the details of position. Be sure every 
pupil is holding the pen correctly. This lesson is full of great 
small letter movement possibilities. If practiced properly it will 
add greatly to the movement power. These instructions should be 
studied diligently and applied very specifically. The section of the 
oblique straight line drill should be practiced rapidly and with 
very fine lines. It may be used alone for a time to make sure that 
the height and slant (especially the slant) are uniform. It should 


be made one ruled space in height. The l’s may be made in sec¬ 
tions of five or ten. Ten is perhaps better as the count of 10 is 
preferable. The small letter movement must be used. The b’s 
should be made in sections of five, and the five letters are made 
to the count of 10. The small letter movement must be used in 
the b’s also. The loop is made to a count the same as the 1. The 
second part is also made to a count, as the minute retrace (called 
a tick stroke) is a straight down stroke (although not counted 










202 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


in the regular thirty-two straight down strokes of the small letter 
alphabet). This tick stroke needs special attention. It is straight 
and retraces downward on the preceding up stroke. At the bottom 
of the tick stroke the regular small letter movement stop is made, 
and from this stopping point the succeeding letter begins. The b 


is thus made to two counts—five letters to the count of 10. The 
1 is on the loop and the 2 on the tick stroke of the first letter; the 
3 on the second loop and the 4 on the tick stroke of the second 
letter, and so on. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 16 






Begin the recitation by calling attention to correct position. 
In the h the count of 2 or 10 is used. The h has two straight 
down strokes and thus requires two distinct movements, each a 
quick up-and-down motion followed by a distinct stop. If the 
count of 2 is used any number of letters may be joined, but there 
should be not less than four, for the sake of good movement train¬ 
ing. If the count of 10 is used there should be five letters (ten 
straight down strokes) joined. The second part of the li is like 
the last part of n and m. The h is the same form as the y, in¬ 
verted. The k is made to the count of 3. The 1 is for the loop, 
as in 1, b and h; the 2 is on the small horizontal open oval, and 


the 3 for the final straight down stroke. There must be three 
distinct stops in the movement in making the k with the small 
letter movement. In joining the h and k the count should be 1— 
2 for the h ; and 1—2—3 for the k. The space between the two 
straight down strokes in the k is narrower than between the two 
straight down strokes in the h. The true arm movement must be 
used, since it should always be the aim in every lesson to increase 
the movement power, as well as learn the correct letter form. The 
loops are a little less than a ruled space in height. All move¬ 
ments must be quick. All lines must be light. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 17 



Give the necessary attention to position. In this lesson is com¬ 
bined the miniature capital letter movement (used in small ovals) 


and the small letter movement. The word baggage is one of the 
best words in the English language for this specific purpose. The 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


203 


b must be written with the pure small letter movement . In the a’s 
the miniature capital letter movement is used for making the 
ovals and is then merged into the small letter movement for mak¬ 
ing the straight down stroke. The ability to thus change from 
one form of movement to another, and do so smoothly, is of great 
value in producing good writing. The ovals and the following 
straight down strokes to the writing line, are the same in the a 
and g. The tick stroke in the b must have special attention. The 
e must be of even height with the a’s and g’s and must have the 
final stroke put on at full length. The loops in the b and g’s are 


the same size. The long spacing between the letters is a very 
important feature, and must be made with a distinct glide of the 
movement for each space. The lines must be fine. The move¬ 
ment must be rapid enough to produce smooth lines and be help¬ 
ful in developing movement power. Finger action must not be 
permitted. If the movement does not seem to show the necessary 
freedom it will be best to work for a short time on the compact 
continuous oval and the oblique straight line drills, and then try 
this lesson again. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 18 



Give the necessary attention to the position. The small p is 
one of the best letters in the small letter alphabet for movement 
practice covering the straight line and small oval. The p does not 
extend as high as the loop in 1 and b. It belongs to the semi - 
extended group. The long down stroke is straight. The loop at 
the bottom is smaller than the loop in 1 and b, being the same size 
as the loop in the d. The oval is the same form as the oval in a, 
inverted. The lower loop and the final oval are the same form 
as the corresponding parts in the d, inverted. The final oval is 
closed and must not be made higher than a and other minimum 
letters. The spacing requires the glide. This feature of the move¬ 


ment must have more and more attention from lesson to lesson. It 
is of very great importance that the little finger glide with the 
movements of the pen, from letter to letter, instead of remaining 
stationary and causing the hand to tip over on its side, as is often 
erroneously done. The movement must be rapid enough to bring 
developmnet, and to produce smooth lines. There must be no 
gripping of the penholder in excess of what is necessary to keep 
it in position. The first joint of the first finger must not be 
bent down. The down strokes must all be as light as the up 
strokes. Every lesson must be considered from the standpoint of 
arm movement training, as well as in regard to form. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 19 


Begin the recitation by calling attention to correct position. 
In the present lesson, and in others that are to follow, every effort 
must be made to use and further develop the arm movement. The 
increased difficulty in making certain small letters with the arm 


movement must be recognized, and the situation must be dealt 
with accordingly. If it is found that the tendency to use the 
finger movement is very strong, more use should be made of mere 
movement drills, interspersed with the regular lesson work. Each 



204 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 





lesson is designed to help in developing the arm movement, but 
this cannot be accomplished by using the fingers on the more 
difficult work. When the more serious tests come to hand, extra 
effort must be made to master them in the proper way. These 
occasions will call for thoughtfulness on the part of the teacher. 
The teacher must understand when to review movement drills 
for the purpose of aiding in the present lessons. Constant care 


must be exercised to keep the pupils working to the best advantage 
from the arm movement standpoint. At the same time form 
must be given due consideration. The undertaking is full of 
serious problems and satisfactory results cannot be secured with¬ 
out intelligent direction on the part of the teacher and faithful 
effort on the part of the pupils. Only those who try right learn 
to write right. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 20 



Begin by calling attention to the details of position. In this 
lesson is used the longest stroke to be found in any of the small 
letters. In the f the down stroke is straight. The upper loop is 
the same as 1 and the lower loop is the same form as the cor¬ 
responding part of q. The upper loop crosses at the height of the 
i, and the lower loop closes at the writing line. If the loops were 
cut off where they close the remaining part would make the i. 
If the lower loops were cut off the connected 1 would remain. 
It is usually not a very difficult matter to use the arm movement 
in the f, because of the long stroke required, but there are other 
features that will require special attention. It is an excellent test 



to try to make the letters uniform. It is also a problem to make 
the slant of a succession of letters uniform. The lengths of the 
loops must be uniform; and the same is true of their widths. It 
will require more attention to make the details of form accurate 
in this lesson than in most of the preceding lessons; although the 
movement will usually require less attention. The lines must be 
light. Finger movement must be considered absolutely out of the 
question in this lesson. This lesson should be written on every 
line like others and the upper loops of one line must be placed be¬ 
tween the lower loops of the line next above. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 

Lesson 21 

Take the necessary precaution to see that every pupil is using the small letters, in addition to using the most suitable letters for 

the correct position. It will be noted that in taking up work on training in the small letter movement, the first lessons were on 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


205 



r 



TT7T 




letters wholly above the writing line; these were followed by les¬ 
sons on letters in which the long parts extended above and below 
the line (17 and IS) ; this by a lesson in which the loops all ex¬ 
tended downward (19) ; this by a lesson against requiring ex¬ 
tension both ways (20), and now we take up another lesson in 
which the extensions are all downward. It will be readily appre¬ 
ciated that some such arrangement is necessary to give the nec¬ 
essary practice in the elements of the arm movement that make it 
practicable. The y is the same form as the h, inverted. The oval 


and upper part of the straight down stroke in the g are the same 
form as the corresponding parts in the a. The loops in y and g are 
alike. The long spaces between the joined letters must be given 
special attention, and a good movement requires a smooth glide in 
making these spaces. The straight down strokes in the loops must 
not be overlooked. All lines must be light. The page effect must 
be pleasing. The spacing must be accurate—showing regular- 
columns in the full page work. Criticisms must be made of all 
details that mar the accuracy and beauty of the letters. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 22 







Give the necessary attention to the details of position. In this 
lesson all the down strokes are straight. It is one of the very 
best words for practice on the small letter movement. The heights 
of all parts of all letters in the word must be uniform. The spacing 
is short between parts of letters and is long between all joined 
letters. It is hardly possible to select a better word for practice 
in the glide which carries the hand from letter to letter in writing. 
Each word should be written complete without lifting the pen or 
changing the position of the arm or paper. While the details of 
form must always be given close attention, this lesson should be 
thought of principally as a small letter movement drill. The 


movement should be rapid enough to make all lines smooth and 
give real training in the arm movement. No finger action should 
be permitted. The spacing should be uniform. The words are 
placed close together. The down strokes should be on a uniform 
slant—the slant of the oblique straight line drill, for each pupil. 
It is a good plan to practice the oblique straight line drill briefly 
before trying this word—making it one space and then less than 
a space in height. All the lines must be fine. The full page effect 
must always be pleasing. No carelessly prepared work should be 
accepted. 



206 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 23 



Begin the recitation by calling attention to the details of posi¬ 
tion This and the remaining lessons in this book axe arranged 
to give a review of many of the capital letters m connection with 
small letters that have been selected to give special advantage to 
entail letter movement. In this lesson the first gioup of 
canitaTsIs used, anS for preliminary or supplementary work it will 
i ^ rail ia nrnctice each capital alone. The count for each ca.pital 
is 2 or 10 When practiced separately the A should be finished 
with a down stroke, omitting the final up stroke. Among the small 
letters tie r s and final t must have special attention. The r 
and s comprise the medial group of small letters and aie slightly 




higher than the minimum letters. The t is the same height as the 
beginning point in the C, hut not as high as the full height of the 
capitals. The final t does not have the retrace used m the regulai 
form of t, and the final stroke is a left instead of a right curve, 
as used in the regular form. The final t is used only at the ends 
of words and has no cross. The spacing throughout the copy 
must be carefully noted. The capitals are placed close together. 
The spaces between the joined small letters are wide, affording 
the very important training in making the glide which is one ol 
the very important features of the small letter movement. I he 
movement must be rapid enough to produce smooth lines. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 24 



rheck up the details of position to begin the recitation In this 
lesson so much has been embodied that only the most critical 
studv and careful practice are sufficient to bring out the important 
features of the copy. In the capitals, the three controlling stroke* 
thlt use the initial loop are used ( controlling strokes 2, 3, 4) 
In the N and M the first long down strokes are straight ; in the 
W the first long down stroke is a full right cuive, and in t e 


and U the first long down strokes are compound curves. To fail to 
make these distinctions is to fail to learn one of the chief lessons 
in this copy. The small letters are especially suited to give prac¬ 
tice in the small letter movement. This is because all the down 
strokes, except one in the a and a very short stroke in the top or 
the r are straight. The spacing must be wide between small 
letters to require the glide in the movement. The t is the same 





THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


207 


height as the second part of Y and U. The h is as high as the 
first part of the capitals. The lines must be light and the move¬ 
ment always rapid. In the numerals the 4 and 6 extend higher 
than the others, and the 7 and 9 lower. The 4 does not extend 


below the line. This lesson emphasizes a number of details but 
the most important are the three controlling strokes in the capitals 
and the many straight down strokes and the spacing in the small 
letters. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 25 


/J$, (3 ^/e5~Cy °fo 


Begin the recitation by directing attention to the details of posi¬ 
tion. In this lesson, as in the preceding lesson, three different 
controlling strokes are used. Controlling stroke number 2 is used 
in H and K; number 3 in Q and X, and number 5-6 in the T. In 
the small letters only two curved down strokes are used (in c and 
a). In the H, Iv, Q and X the initial loops are alike, and in the T 
the top loop is also the same form but is slightly larger. It is 
only by embodying all these features that good results can be 
secured. The small letters are especially adapted to small letter 
movement training, and to get the benefit this lesson should bring 
it is necessary that the small letter movement rule be observed 
in writing the small letters. The wide spacing between the small 


letters must be made with the glide so often emphasized. The 
spacing of the whole copy must be such as to make it fill the line 
correctly. Finger action must be prohibited. The movement must 
be rapid, and should be watched carefully from the standpoint of 
movement, making certain that all the elements of the true arm 
movement are employed. The lines must be fine. In the numerals 
the 4 and 6 are made higher than the others and the 7 and 9 lower. 
All numerals, except the 7 and 9, rest on the writing line. The 
work of all pupils should be criticised very closely, both as to 
form and movement, and no work should be accepted that shows 
carelessness or indifference. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 26 





Give the necessary attention to position, first of all. In this strokes are used— controlling stroke number 1 in the H; number 

lesson, as in the two preceding lessons, three different controlling 5-6 in the D, and number 8 in the I. The small letters were se- 



208 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


lected with the view to giving a special opportunity to practice 
the small letter movement. All the down strokes in the small let¬ 
ters, except one each in a, c, d, g and o (and in top of r), are 
straight. For each straight down stroke that rests on the writing 
line, the distinctive small letter movement should be used. The 
t’s and the d are of even height and as high at the beginning 
point in the D. The b is as high as the controlling strokes in 
H and I. Special care must be exercised to make the I slant like 
the other letters, and all letters must slant the same as the 


pupil’s oblique straight line drill. The glide between the joined 
small letters must be given close attention. The movement must 
always be rapid and the lines must be fine. The loop at the bot¬ 
tom of the D must lie flat on the line. The tick stroke in the 
second part of the b must not be overlooked. The t is closed to 
the height of i. The d loop is small and the crossing is at the top 
of the oval. The c has a dot at the end of the hook. The t’s are 
crossed with short, straight strokes. The spacing must be such 
that the copy will fill the line. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 27 








Give the necessary attention to the details of position. In this 
lesson the capitals employ the two controlling strokes that most 
nearly resemble each other, especially when used in letters. These 
are the second and fourth controlling strokes. The second con¬ 
trolling stroke has a straight long down stroke, as used in the 
N in this lesson, and the fourth has a compound curve long down 
stroke, as used in the U and Y in this lesson. The second parts 
of the U, N and Y are of even height and not as high as the first 
parts. In the small letters all the down strokes are straight, ex- 
except in the o’s. This copy thus provides excellent material for 
practice in the small letter movement. The glide between the 


joined small letters must be given close attention. The initial 
loops in the capitals of this lesson are all alike. The down stroke 
in the Y that extends into the lower loop is straight and special 
care must be used to place the loop on the correct slant and make 
it small. The movement should be free from finger action and 
should be rapid. The lines must all be fine. The tick strokes at 
the top of the last part of the w and at the top of the o must not 
be slighted. The t’s are the same height as the second parts of 
U, N and Y. Both form and movement are to be perfected in the 
practice. The arm movement cannot be learned by using the 
fingers; and good forms cannot be learned by scribbling poor ones. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 28 


See that all pupils maintain the proper position. In this lesson 
three different controlling strokes are used in the capitals— 
number 2 in the K; number 8 in the Q, and number 8 in the J. 


In the small letters all the groups are represented—the medial 
group in s and r; the semi-extended group in the t’s; the extended 
group in the k and y, and the minimum group in the remaining 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


209 



small letters. All extended letters above the line are the height 
of the capitals. The tick stroke is also used in this lesson—in the 
w and o. The miniature capital letter movement is used in the o, 
c and a. The many straight down strokes in the small letters re¬ 
quire the use of the small letter movement. It will thus be seen 
that this lesson demands the most minute study of details; the 
most exacting criticism, and the fullest application of the arm 
movement. It would be difficult to arrange a lesson calling for 


more careful thought or making greater demands upon the move¬ 
ment. It should be noted that the loops below the line in the y’s 
and the J are alike. The minute half-oval in the second part of 
the k requires special care. It must never be closed. The glide 
between joined small letters must be given serious consideration. 
Finger movement must not be permitted. The lines must all be 
fine. Work that has been carelessly done should not be accepted. 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 29 






Take proper note of the details of position before commencing 
on the lesson work. In this lesson the three most closely related 
capitals in the alphabet are used—the P, B and R. Mastery of the 
P means practically the same for the other two capitals. The 
initial stroke used in these three capitals is controlling stroke 5-6. 
It is not the full height of the capitals. The oval of each capital 
must be broad throughout its length. It must be especially noted 
that the turn at the top of each capital is broad. The minute 
loop in the second down stroke of B and R is very small, crosses 
the stem stroke, and is placed at right angles to the slant of the 
letter the same as in the E and K. The space between the two 


down strokes is very narrow in all three of the capitals. This 
lesson has all the groups of small letters represented in it—the 
minimum; the medial; the semi-extended and the extended. They 
should all be noted. The p’s and the d are the same height as the 
stems, or controlling strokes, in the P, B and R. The d is the final 
form, and should not have a final up stroke. The loops in 1 and 
h extend to the full height of the capitals. The s’s are pointed 
at the tops. The wide spacing between the small letters must be 
noted. The lines must all be very light. No finger movement 
should be permitted. 





210 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE VI, BOOK VI 
Lesson 30 



Give all necessary attention to details of position. This lesson 
is designed to give a review of all the groups of small letters and 
special practice on the tick strokes used in o, v, w and b. It also 
provides combinations of small letters offering an exceptional 
opportunity to employ the small letter movement. The upper 
loops are all as high as the first part of the N and the t’s are as 
high as the second part of the capital. The slight retrace in the 
o, v, w and b, called the tick stroke, must have special attention. 
The point and retrace at the top of the s must have extra con¬ 
sideration. The down stroke in the s is a compound curve. The 
initial up stroke in the s is a full right curve. The loops below the 


line in the f’s and the g are the same in width and length. The 
movement must always be watched with great care, in the develop¬ 
ing stages. The true small letter movement must be used in all 
small letters having straight down strokes that rest on the 
writing line. It must be understood that proper movement train¬ 
ing is of the highest consideration in learning to write. The whole 
subject is summed up in the legend : Good concepts make writing 
accurate; good movement makes writing easy. Both must be 
constantly improved if there is to be progress in mastering the 
subject. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 1 



In this grade and book the details of position and letter form 
should be worked out still more minutely than in Grade VI. This 
is possible because of the fact that the average pupil’s apprehen¬ 
sion is developing rapidly at this age, and the developing of motor 
system is also still on the sharp upward curve. While there will 
be found pupils who are under developed or developed in advance 
of the average at this stage, as at all others, it is, nevertheless, a 


period in which the average pupil will be found capable of under¬ 
taking the mastery of the arm movement and the study of details 
of form more successfully than at any previous time. It will now 
be found that pupils may be given assignments in penmanship that 
are quite like those that mature people may be expected to per¬ 
form. What seemed almost impossible in Grade IV; perhaps only 
a little less difficult in Grade V, and still beset with some diffi- 





THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


211 


culties in Grave VI, will now seem to be much easier of execution. 
This is due in part to the previous training the pupil has had, 
but is attributable more largely to the fact of the pupil’s approach¬ 
ing maturity. Pupils in Grade VII should be given more compre¬ 
hensive and also more specific instructions than in previous grades 
and the criticisms of their work should be more exact. The stand¬ 
ard which they should be required to attain should be higher than 
in preceding grades. Errors and shortcomings that may have been 
looked upon with considerable leniency in preceding grades should 
now be checked up more severely. Pupils who have not had the 
proper training in this subject in preceding grades will show a 
very decided inclination to revert to their former practices in 
their writing outside of the regular writing period, for a time, and 
in this respect they must be held to strict personal accountability, 
if much good is to be accomplished. Progress in this grade will be 
more rapid than in preceding grades if the pupils are made to 
realize that they should take the responsibility of learning largely 
upon themselves. On the other hand almost no progress will be 
made if they are permitted to revert to their old erroneous ways 
in their general written work. 

As explained in the instructions accompanying lessons 1 in 
Grade VI, the number of pupils that may be expected to use the 
arm movement in all their writing in the different movement 
grades will be found to be about as follows: Grade IV, 10 per¬ 
cent; Grade V, perhaps 20 to 30 per cent; Grade VI about 50 
per cent; while in Grade VII about 75 to SO per cent of the pupils 
should write regularly with the arm movement. As previously 
stated these per cents do not refer to the number of pupils who 
will be able to use the arm movement in mere movement drills or 


to some extent in the capitals, and more or less in the small let¬ 
ters. In this practice work the per cents will run much higher. 

After making the necessary explanations concerning position; 
noting especially that the penholder points between the elbow and 
the shoulder, and that the wrist and fleshy part of the hand which 
holds the pen. are raised slightly above the desk, to prevent fric¬ 
tion, commence on the first lesson. The ovals should be made two 
ruled spaces high; in the direction indicated by the arrow; very 
compact; with very fine lines, and uniform. This is called the 
direct compact continuous oval drill. It is made to the count of 
10, repeated over and over without a break between the 1 and 10, 
and rapidly—rapidly enough to produce a sensation of warmth or 
heat in the arm. 

The heading must be correct; using correct styles of letters, and 
with correct punctuation, correct spacing and with all light lines. 
The work on the page must be arranged as shown in the models in 
another part of the text. 

The practice of turning the paper should be used in this drill; 
that is, after making one coat of fine lines, not very compact, the 
paper should be turned (top toward the body) and a second coat 
made over the same work, from the opposite end, but with the 
same direction of movement. Then, turning the paper again, a 
third coat should he put on, and so on, until the paper becomes 
hidden under the mass of very fine lines. The movement should 
always be rapid. Turning the paper will give an opportunity to 
train the movement in accuracy by trying to always make the pen 
strike in the white spaces. No work with heavy, dragging or 
blurred lines should he accepted for a passing grade. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 2 


The position should be the same for making lesson 2 as for 
practicing lesson 1. The position of the paper in relation to the 
arm should have special attention. There must be no side swing 
in the movement in making this drill. This means that the paper 
must be held the same as for making the oval drill. This is called 


the oblique straight line drill. The chief purpose of the drill is 
to discover to the pupil his natural, individual slant, and make his 
movement act habitually on that slant. But it is also helpful in 
developing range of movement and in improving all the elements 
of the arm movement. The lines must be very fine. Fine lines 



212 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



indicate proper touch, which is very important in learning pen¬ 
manship. There should never be anything held at the edges of 
this or any mere movement drill, to make the edges straight. The 
greatest possible care should be given to the matter of keeping the 
slant uniform. The drill should be made two ruled spaces high as 
a regular class requirement and on the final specimen for grading; 
but it will be advantageous to practice it three spaces in height 
if this can be reached without slipping or raising the arm. The 
count for this drill is the same as for number 1—10. The counts 
are all on the down strokes, and should be given rapidly. The 
movement on mere movement drills, at the beginning of the prac¬ 
tice, should be rapid enough to produce a sensation of warmth or 
heat in the arm. In preparing the final specimen, which is to be 
graded, the movement should be slower than in preliminary or 
preparation drill, but should always be quite rapid. 

The details of the heading must have constant attention. No 
specimen should be given a passing grade unless the heading has 
been written with the correct styles of letters and is otherwise 
according to the specifications. Careless work should never be 
accepted. Scribbling should be considered as inexcusable as im¬ 
proper language. Scribbling is the slang of writing. It is to 
writing what vulgarity is to speech and should be looked upon 
with as little favor. Coarse, heavy lines should not be counte¬ 
nanced. They indicate excessive gripping, and lack of refinement 
in the touch. Soiled and untidy papers should be rejected. It 
should be impressed upon the pupils with perfect clearness that 
all specimens submitted for grading must be on clean, smooth 
paper; must be in fine lines; must have the heading correct in all 
details; must show a pleasing arrangement on the page, and must 
give satisfactory evidence of having been prepared with great care. 

Normal pupils in this grade, as in the sixth, will show marked 


tendencies to enjoy physical action and sensation, due to the 
period of physical development now being experienced, and in¬ 
tensive arm movement drill will usually delight them. They can 
be successfully appealed to to prepare pages of mere movement 
drills for display uses, and this should be done. Success in estab¬ 
lishing the arm movement habit depends upon a few simple laws 
which should be kept in mind. The same movement should be re¬ 
peated as often as possible, with the least possible variation in 
form, and in as short a time as possible. It is impossible to 
practice mere movement drills too much. The more they are prac¬ 
ticed correctly, the finer the line quality will become; the more 
uniform and compact the drill will become, and the more pleasing 
will be the final product. All of which will mean that the move¬ 
ment is approaching the stage when it will respond to commands 
with a promptness and precision that will make it possible to exe¬ 
cute good writing with ease and rapidity. 

It must be remembered that the only purpose of the arm move¬ 
ment is to make writing easy. It cannot perform this function 
until it has been trained to a point of high responsiveness to the 
mind. This training can come only through proper practice. 
Proper practice means that the speed must be sufficiently rapid to 
produce the necessary destruction and rebuilding in the muscle 
and nerve substances in the writing machinery; that there must 
be a constant purpose to guide the movement in a definite course 
(form), and that there must be sufficient repetition to establish 
the habit of specific performance. 

Haphazard, indefinite practice is worse than mere loss; it is 
detrimental. Penmanship practice should be intelligently done. 
The teacher should have a definite purpose in view in directing 
the pupils’ efforts. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


213 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 3 



Take due note of the elements of correct position in beginning 
the recitation. This drill is called the conic (or conical) compact 
oval. It has the features of light lines, uniformity (tapering) 
and compactness emphasized in connection with lesson 1, but has 
the added characteristic of the diminishing (or increasing) di¬ 
ameter from one end to the other. A fine line may be ruled with 
a pencil for the diagonal edge. This drill may well be practiced 
at one, two and three spaces, but the final specimen submitted for 
grading should be two ruled spaces in height. It will be seen that 
this drill involves a movement graduated along such a scale as to 
cover all letters (as to size) from the minimum small letters to 
the largest capitals (Y and J), when practiced to fill two spaces. 


It is one of the very best forms of mere movement drill and should 
lead to much beautiful page work. 

The speed should be as already often mentioned; that is, suf¬ 
ficiently rapid to produce the feeling of warmth in the arm. 
After the arm movement has become quite thoroughly mastered 
much can be gained by practicing the mere movement drills at 
a moderate speed, giving increased attention to uniformity and 
mere form ; but at the beginning, when the purpose is to first 
create this power, the speed must be rapid. The attention to 
fine line quality must not be relaxed. The plan of inverting the 
work for successive coats may be used. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 4 














214 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


Begin the recitation by calling attention to the details of posi¬ 
tion. This lesson is the same as lesson 1, except as to size. The 
direct compact continuous oval should now be made three ruled 
spaces of the paper in height. The purpose of this is to increase 
the reserve power and range of the movement. With increased 
range of movement it will be found that the hand with the pen 
can move about over the writing area with greater ease. This is 
a valuable acquisition, since ease in writing is altogether a matter 
of movement. It has been found that, as a rule, reserve power in 
movement is proportional to the range. This means that the 
greater the range the greater the reserve power. It is the reserve 
power that determines the degree of ease with which writing is 
done. A person who uses all his movement power in writing 


necessarily writes with difficulty. On the other hand a person 
who has much more movement power than he actually uses (re¬ 
serve power) can write with ease. The large oval is the best 
elementary drill for developing range and reserve power in the 
movement. In this grade it should be well mastered at the three- 
space size, and much can be gained by practicing it four spaces 
high. With the increased size special attention must be given to 
the line quality, as there w r ill be a tendency, with many pupils, to 
grip the penholders and thus make the lines heavy. All lines must 
be fine and smooth. It is a good plan to turn the paper about oc¬ 
casionally and work from opposite ends. The count is 10. The 
work must be compact, smooth, uniform. The movement must be 
rapid. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 5 



Refer, as may be necessary, to the details of position. The pur¬ 
pose of this lesson (5) is the same as for the preceding (to in¬ 
crease the range and reserve power) and also to further develop 
the pupil’s power to write on a uniform slant. The movements 
must all be forward-backward with the slight swing outward as 
the hand goes forward, and inward as it moves backward. The 
paper must be held exactly the same in relation to the arm as for 
making the oval drill. This drill must never be made by turning 
the paper and swinging the hand sidewise. Also, there must never 


be anything held at the edges to make them straight. What is re¬ 
quired is a vigorous forward-backward movement, made at the 
same rate of speed as used in the large oval drill. The count is 
also the same as in the large oval. The work of increasing the 
range of movement is in making the skin muscles at the arm rest 
stretch more. It is possible for mature persons to make these skin 
muscles stretch enough to reach six or eight spaces, and some can 
reach more still. The arm must never slip on the desk and must 
never be lifted from the desk while practicing, because either 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


215 


would defeat tjie purpose of the drills—training the skin muscles cially in mere movement drills, to produce a feeling of warmth 

to stretch. The movement should always be rapid enough, espe- or heat in the arm. The lines must be fine. 

GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 6 



Begin the recitation by reference to the essentials of good posi¬ 
tion. This lesson is called the small e and oval or connected capi¬ 
tal C drill . The chief characteristic that distinguishes it from the 
mere movement drills is, as explained in connection with lesson 7, 
that instead of retracing a given form, the form is repeated in 
a succession strung out toward the right, necessitating a pro¬ 
gressive glide in the movement. At first only two or three letters 
should be connected without stopping, so the movement may be¬ 
come accustomed to the correct form, without subjecting it to the 
danger of running into a bad form, which is likely to occur after 
the first few letters for a time. The number should, however, be 
increased as rapidly as the movement is prepared to extend into 


additional letters, until as many as possible can be made with 
one continuous stroke, even to the full line. It is one of the 
best possible tests of good movement to make a full line of this 
drill with one continuous movement and without lifting the pen 
or changing the position of the arm or paper. The count for this 
drill is 10—making the long down strokes on the odd counts. The 
spacing must be accurate and the lines must be fine. The enclosed 
loop must be small, and it is placed near the right side of the outer 
oval. This is a detail that will call for a high degree of accuracy 
in movement control. The movement should be rapid enough to 
make smooth lines. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 7 













216 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


Take the usual precaution about the proper position. In this 
lesson the work begun in lesson 4, and continued in lesson 5; 
that is, increasing the range and reserve power of the arm move¬ 
ment, is extended. It is the indirect compact continuous oval 
drill, made three ruled spaces of the paper in height. The count 
is 10. The movement must be rapid enough to heat up the arm, 
at least for a time, so it will stretch the skin muscles at the arm 
rest. If the movement is trained to work easily in making the 
three-space oval it will add much to the ease in doing ordinary 
writing. It is very important that the arm be kept down on the 
desk, and not permitted to slip in practicing this drill. The all 
important thing is to make the skin muscles stretch and this would 
not be done if the arm were lifted up, or allowed to slip. The lines 


must be light. It will seem more difficult to make light lines in 
the large than in the small oval, because there will be a ten¬ 
dency to grip the holder more. But constant care must be exer¬ 
cised to keep the muscles relaxed; hold the penholder lightly, and 
make fine lines. Fine lines indicate refinement of the touch. The 
ovals must be uniform and the work very compact. It is a good 
plan to turn the paper occasionally and work from the opposite 
end. The finished ovals should be clear, free from muddy spots, 
smooth, and really beautiful. If the lines are as fine as they 
should be the finished ovals will look almost transparent. The 
work will look more as though made with a very fine brush than 
with a pen. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 8 



Give the necessary attention to the position, to begin with. This 
is a movement drill designed to test the ability to apply the in¬ 
creased range of movement developed in the large oval and 
straight line drills to more complex forms. At first only three or 
four letters should be joined without lifting the pen or stopping; 
but the number should be added to as rapidly as possible until the 
full line can be made with one stroke and a continuous, rapid 
movement. The details to be noted especially are: To make a 
broad turn at the top; to make the minute loop in the down stroke 
very small and at right angles to the slant of the letter {left end 
turned upward) ; to make the bottom loop small, without a sharp 
point, or angle, and flat on the line ( not turned up at the left end) 


and to make the two parts of the down stroke slanted like the 
oblique straight line drill. To test the slant a line should be 
drawn across the backs of the two parts of the down stroke. The 
spacing must be noted. About the same number as given in the 
copy should be made for the full line. The count for this drill is 
3. The 1 is on the cross stroke at the bottom, or the long up stroke, 
and the 2 and 3 on the two parts of the down stroke. The move¬ 
ment should be rapid, but not as rapid as used in the oval. The 
lines must be fine. It should be remembered that the purpose of 
this drill is movement training. Making it with the fingers is a 
waste of time. The form should be criticised with the view of 
guiding the movement more exactly. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 9 

Begin by directing attention to the details of position. This les- training farther. The form is the same as in the precding drill, 
son is for the same purpose as the preceding; but carries the with the connectng oval added. The connecting oval surrounds 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


217 




the minute loop in such a manner as to cross the stroke above 
and below the loop, each at the middle, and also divides the space 
at the left of the minute loop at the middle. This exactness need 
not be absolutely required but should be understood by the pupil 
and aimed at. At first only a few letters should be joined, and 
while only a few are made connected, very great care should be 
given to the details of form. Then as the movement becomes 
more and more accustomed to the form, letters should be added, 
until the full line can be made with a continuous, rapid move¬ 
ment. The count is 4—the 4 falling on the connecting oval. This 
is a test of the arm movement that can hardly be surpassed for 


bringing out all the phases of the capital letter movement. That 
it may seem difficult is not a reason for slighting it or giving it 
up; but is the best of reasons for mastering it. The movement 
that is so well under control as to be able to make line after line 
of this drill (each running entirely across the page) rapidly, and 
with a smooth, continuous stroke, may be assumed to have reached 
the stage when plain penmanship may be said to be practically 
mastered. All lines must be fine. Criticisms must be directed 
against many details that are likely to be made wrong by most 
pupils. The broad turns at the tops; the flat loops at the bot¬ 
toms ; the minute loops at the middle, need close attention. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 10 



Give the necessary attention to the details of position. This 
drill, while using a capital letter and the oval movement, also 
uses the straight down stroke feature which is very prominent in 
small letters. The drill is, therefore, helpful in training the move¬ 
ment to make the transition from the capital letter to the small 
letter movement. The three down strokes in the letter are straight, 
quite close together, and slanted like the oblique straight line drill. 
Each successive part shows a decrease in height. The connecting 
oval is half above and half below the line, and is slanted down¬ 
ward toward the right. At first only two or three letters should 
be made with one continuous stroke, and during this time great 
care should be given to the form and to the elements of move¬ 
ment. As the movement becomes accustomed to the form, more 


letters should be added. The full purpose of the drill should not 
be considered as having been accomplished until the full line can 
be made rapidly, with a continuous stroke, and without shifting 
the arm or paper. To have to break the drill into several sections 
is due to too limited range in the movement; and the necessity 
of doing so can be overcome by practicing more on the large oval 
drill. It should be clearly understood by teacher and pupils that 
the purpose of this and other drills is to develop and train the 
arm movement. Making the drills with the finger movement is, 
therefore, a waste of time. The count for this drill is 4—1, 2 and 
3 on the straight down strokes, and 4 on the connecting oval. All 
the lines must be fine. 



218 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 11 



Direct attention to the details of position. In this drill there 
are embodied the features of movement and form brought out in 
the preceding drill, and also other details which will require spe¬ 
cial attention. Changing from one letter to another without mak¬ 
ing a break in the movement, or without even hesitating, calls 
for increased movement power. This should be thoroughly learned. 
The connecting ovals are all alike. Special attention must be given 
to the stroke following the V, which must be a regular curve. It 
is a common error to make a stop at the top of the second part of 
the Y, and an angular joining. This must not be permitted. The 
third section is comprised of three M’s, and is not to be made a 
repetition of the other sections. This is often overlooked by the 
pupil, because he observes and thinks too little. 


It is also a common error to make the oval between the V and 
U extend too high. All connecting ovals extend half below the 
line. The spacing must be given careful attention. The down 
strokes in the M and N are straight; in the V and first part of the 
U they are compound curves, and the last down stroke in the U is 
a left curve. The movement must be trained to act rapidly and 
smoothly. All tendency to make breaks should be overcome. 
The lines must be fine. Again it should be emphasized that this 
is an arm movement drill and that nothing can be gained by mak¬ 
ing the lesson with the finger movement. All pupils will not be 
able to make all drills equally well; but each should use the cor¬ 
rect movement and with it make the forms as accurate as possible. 



GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 12 




Make an examination of position, and see that all assume it in 
all details. This second part of this lesson is called the ratchet 
drill. This is the foundation drill for learning the small letter 
movement. It is of as great importance in developing the peculiar 
phase of the arm movement required to write the small letters 
successfully, as is the compact continuous oval drill in developing 
the arm movement at the beginning. It should be practiced as the 
full embodiment of the small letter movement. The ovals should 


be made to the count of 10, given at the speed used in lesson 1; 
that is, rapidly. The second part of the drill is also made to the 
count of 10; but the rate of speed changes abruptly and very de¬ 
cidedly. The change is like changing from the motion of skating 
to that of walking. In this second part the successive parts are 
made at about the rate steps are taken in walking rapidly. There 
must be a quick up-and-down movement, and a stop for each of 
the successive parts. This is absolutely necessary to be able fo 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


219 


make the down strokes straight. Unless they are made straight 
and with the correct form of movement there can be no gain 
from the drill. The rule for applying the small letter movement 
is this: Make a quick up-and-down movement and stop for each 
straight down stroke that rests on the writing line. No lesson can 


have so great an effect for good on small letter writing as the 
second part of this, if properly practiced, and thoroughly learned. 
It should he reverted to again and again along with future lessons 
to give it every opportunity to produce the best possible results. 
All lines must be light. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 13 



Take full note of all the details of position to begin the recita¬ 
tion. In the l drill the small letter movement finds its easiest 
application to actually making a letter. The disjoined letters at. 
the beginning of the line are to show the necessity of stopping at 
the bottom of the straight down strokes. The connected letters 
should he made in sections of ten and to the count of 10. Each 
letter must be made with a quick up-and-down movement and. a 
perfect stop at the bottom. This is the distinctively small letter 
movement. The importance of mastering this special phase of 
the arm movement will he appreciated when it is considered that 
of the forty down strokes in the small letters, thirty-two are 
straight. The rolling or spiral movement used in making most 


of the capitals cannot he used in making the small letters that 
have straight down 'Strokes, without the special modification 
specified here. The movement must be the true arm movement, 
and the successive movements must all be made quickly—hardly 
more than an instantaneous motion; but the stops give the suc¬ 
cession of movements a close resemblance to steps in walking. 
The letters must' be uniform in height and spacing. The slant 
must be the same for each pupil as his oblique straight line drill. 
The lines must be fine. This drill will have a very decided effect 
for good on nearly all the small letters if well mastered with 
the true small letter movement. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 14 


Give the necessary attention to position before commencing 
work on the lesson. The purpose of this lesson is to further de¬ 
velop the small letter movement, undertaken in lesson 12, and 
continued in lesson 13. These three lessons are of such im¬ 


portance in learning the small letter movement that they should 
be reverted to again and again as preliminary or supplementary 
drill. The importance of mastering the small letter movement will 
be still more fully appreciated when it is remembered that there 



220 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


are perhaps two to three hundred small letters used to every 
capital; and that in the small letters there are five times as many 
straight down strokes as curved. It is a good plan to work for 
a few minutes on lessons 12, 13 and 14, or one of them, at the 
beginning of every writing period in which small letters are to 
be practiced. In practicing this lesson, as with the two preceding 
lessons, the correct movement must be used or nothing can be 
gained. To make this drill with the finger movement is of little 
if any value. The true arm movement must be used, and it must 
be applied in the form designated the small letter movement. This 
peculiar phase must be definitely understood as being like steps 


in walking; not like the glide in skating. It is like the ratchet 
bearing; not the ball bearing in machinery. There must be 
a quick up-and-down movement and a stop, for each straight 
down stroke that rests on the writing line. The count for this 
drill is 3. The best arrangement of the counts is to use 1 and 2 
on the two parts of the u, and 3 on the 1. In this way the 3 may 
be accented slightly, to indicate the longer movement required for 
the 1. Each count must be given quick and sharp. The time be¬ 
tween the counts must be such as to emphasize the stops in the 
movement. The lines must be fine. Every down stroke must be 
straight and on the slant of the oblique straight line drill. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 15 






Check up on the details of position. In the remaining lessons 
in this book results will be determined by two factors, viz.: How 
well the pupil has mastered the arm movement, as such, and how 
well he has mastered the special phase of the arm movement 
called the small letter movement. With good control of the move¬ 
ment the following lessons will need attention chiefly in matters 
of form. If, however, the movement is not good, then strict at¬ 
tention must be given to it as well as to form. The sentences given 
in the following copies have been constructed with the view of 
giving special opportunities to use the small letter movement. It 
has also been the aim to express in the sentences, thoughts that 
must be appreciated by every one who would learn to write 
well. The present lesson expresses the fundamental penmanship 


thought for this grade. If the pupil is not using the arm move¬ 
ment, he has not learned the fundamental thing in the course; and 
of the teacher it must be said, he has not taught the pupil the 
fundamental thing. No one has taught a thing, unless some one 
has learned that thing. 

All the down strokes in this lesson, except six, are straight. All 
the small letter groups are represented—(s and r, medial; t and 
p, semi-extended; 1 and h, extended, and all the rest, minimum). 
The extended small letters are as high as the capitals. The top 
of the p (to the line, and omitting the lower part of the oval) 
and the final t are the same form. The retrace at the top of v and 
o must be noted. Every word has a final up stroke. All move¬ 
ments must be rapid and all lines must be light. 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


221 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 16 



Begin by calling attention to tbe details of position. All the 
groups of small letters are represented in this sentence and all 
the down strokes in the small letters, except six, are straight. 
The sentence expresses a thought of fundamental importance in 
learning to write and gives an opportunity to practice the small 
letter movement to advantage. The d in the word should may be 
finished with a down stroke, making the long down stroke curved 
instead of straight, and omitting the final up stroke, as used in les¬ 
son 20. The loop and oval in the d are the same as the correspond¬ 
ing parts of the p, inverted. The final t must be noted. The loops 


of 1, h, b and f (above the line) are alike and as high as the A. 
The finishing of the o, v and b must be made with care. The 
spacing between the joined small letters must be long and must 
be made with the glide. The pen must be held very lightly and 
all the lines must be fine. Uniformity in slant must be noted, and 
the slant must be the same for each pupil as in his oblique straight 
line drill. Every movement must be rapid. The page effect must 
be pleasing. The heading must be written with as much care as 
the lesson work. Criticisms should be directed against all errors 
of form and movement. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 17 





Take due account of all the details of position. The thought ex¬ 
pressed in this lesson must be impressed on the pupils and they 
must obey the command, if real progress is to be made in learn¬ 
ing to write. This sentence has been arranged with the view to 
giving a good opportunity to practice the small letter movement. 
Only five curved down strokes are used. All the groups of small 
letters are represented. The tick strokes are used in the w, o and 
v. The h is the same form as y, inverted. Note the long spaces 


between the joined letters, requiring the glide in the movement, 
and the absence of vertical spaces between the words, except slight 
ones where the initial strokes are omitted from the a’s in an and 
arm. It should be remembered that when an oval small letter 
(a, c, d, g, o, q) is used by itself or at the beginning of a word 
the introductory stroke is omitted. All the movements must be 
rapid. All the lines must be light. All practice should contribute 
something toward real training. There can be no real training 



222 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


unless the process be correct. The correct process requires that 
the movemeuts be of the arm ; that they be rapid enough to make 
all strokes smooth; that the pen be held lightly enough to make 


fine lines, and that the small letter movement be used for making 
the required straight down strokes in the small letters. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 

Lesson 18 



Call attention to the requirements of good position. Impress 
the pupils with the thought expressed in the sentence used in this 
lesson. Each one must be held to personal accountability, as far 
as possible, in considering his movement. This sentence, like the 
preceding, has been arranged with the view to giving a good op¬ 
portunity 7 to develop the small letter movement. Only seven down 
strokes in the small letters are curved. It is only by making the 
others straight that good work can be done, and it is only by 
making the straight down strokes (above the line) with the 
true small letter movement that real improvement in movement 
power for writing can be developed. Making any of these lessons 


•Y 



with the finger movement cannot add to the movement power for 
writing. It can only help in perfecting the concepts of form. 
Pupils who did not receive proper training in form in the primary 
grades must now learn both form and movement. The movement 
must not be neglected for form, but both must be carried forward 
together. If the small letter work takes on a sprawling appear¬ 
ance it is because the capital letter movement is being used. The 
straight down strokes in the small letters require that the small 
letter movement be used. The glide between the joined small let¬ 
ters must be considered important. All lines must be light. The 
final t must be noted. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 19 



Begin the recitation by calling attention to the details of posi¬ 
tion. The sentence used for this lesson expresses a thought that 
must be appreciated by teacher and pupils, if progress in the sub¬ 
ject is to be made. Movement is the medium through which the 


concepts are expressed. If the medium is poor the expression will, 
necessarily, be poor. It is a very important law that to express 
any concept, the means of expression must he adequate to the 
purpose. In writing the concept is, primarily, form; and, sec- 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


223 


ondarily, relation between forms. This relationship involves the 
idea of continuity and of rate of speed. Movement thus becomes 
the expression of form and the use of the form —continuity, rate, 
speed. If this understanding can be brought to the understanding 
of the pupil, much will have been accomplished. This lesson is 
especially adapted to the work of improving the glide which 


carries the hand from letter to letter, and which makes the con¬ 
spicuous spaces between the joined letters. The final t’s must be 
noted. The t’s, d and p are the same in height, and as high as the 
second part of the M. Only five down strokes in the small letters 
of this sentence are curved. The small letter movement must 
be kept almost constantly in use. The lines must be fine. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 20 



Give the necessary attention to details of position. This sen¬ 
tence is designed to emphasize the important glide feature of the 
movement, so often referred to. The final t and final d’s must be 
noted. The t’s, d’s and p are the same in height, and not as high 
as the h’s, l’s and L. Ten down strokes in the small letters are 
curved, and all the others are straight. The likeness between the 
loop and oval in p and d (inverted) should be considered. It 
should be noted how much smaller the loop in d is than the loops 
in 1 and h. The movements must all be rapid. A slow, dragging 
movement cannot bring development. The pens must be held 
lightly, so the muscles may be known to be relaxed, and so the 


lines will all be light. The full page effect must have close con¬ 
sideration. The heading must be of as good quality as the sen¬ 
tence work. The margins, spacings, slant, uniformity of letters 
and line quality must be watched with a critical eye. All signs 
of scribbling must be condemned and no page must be given a 
passing grade that does not show that it has been prepared with 
care and with an understanding of what is required. If the lines 
are too heavy, the cause must be discovered and corrected. In¬ 
telligent criticism must play a very large part in the work. Doing 
a thing incorrectly must be looked upon as dangerous, if not alto¬ 
gether a waste of time and energy. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 21 


Take due account of the details of position, first of all. In the 
sentence of this lesson is given a warning that should be heeded. 
No finger movement should be used in any of the practice work 
in this grade. If the forms cannot be made well with the arm 
movement, the remedy should be found in further improving the 
movement, and not in abandoning it and resorting the finger 
movement. The purpose of these lessons is to constantly improve 


the arm movement. Every letter should be looked upon as a 
drill for the arm movement. The details of form should be 
studied and closely criticised, to the end that the arm movement 
may be made to perform with greater exactness. At the same 
time the movement must be rapid enough to be smooth. Move¬ 
ment habits can be brought about through rapid, but not through 
slow action. The many straight down strokes in this lesson call 



224 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



for the small letter movement. Pupils who are inclined to scribble 
or work carelessly must be watched with extra vigilance, and all 
evidences of such work must be called to their attention, and 
made the ground for rejecting the specimens. If only painstaking 


effort— effort made according to all directions given up to this 
stage of the course —is understood by pupils to be acceptable, few, 
if any, will try to secure passing grades on work improperly done. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 22 



Call attention to the details of position. The sentence used in 
this lesson expresses the aim of all penmanship practice—that of 
training the writing “machinery” to obey the mind. The mind 
conceives the forms of the letters. It must be taught to conceive 
these forms accurately, which is largely the work of the lower 
grades. After the form is accurately and clearly visualized in 
the mind, the great work of training the writing nerves to guide 
the writing muscles in expressing these forms must be under¬ 
taken. All advanced penmanship practice is, fundamentally, for 
this purpose. It is a waste of time at this stage to neglect the 
chief purpose in practice; that is, neglect the movement. Only 



eight curved down strokes are used in this sentence—all the 
others being straight. This means that the small letter movement 
must play a large part in practicing the lesson. The final d’s 
must be noted. The glide between the joined letters must be 
given proper consideration. The lines must be fine, which means 
that the pens must be held lightly. There must be sufficient speed 
in all movements to effect some improvement in the movement. 
Movement must be remembered as the factor that makes writing 
easy. To serve this purpose it must be mastered. Movement 
mastery cannot result from slighting it, or from side stepping, or 
dodging its requirements. 


GRADE VII, BOOK VII 
Lesson 23 

Begin by directing attention to the details of position. The sen- under complete obedience to the mind and made to work according 
tence used in this lesson further emphasizes the thought expressed to certain laws. This involves a training process in which mere 
in lesson 22. The writing nerves and muscles must be brought movement drills are used first, because they are fundamental, 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


257 


strokes, but a complete part (up-and-down) is made to each count. 
The inter-stroke pauses should become shorter and shorter as the 
practice proceeds and the drill becomes easier, until at last they 
become imperceptible. All the down strokes must be straight and 


on the regular slant. The lines must be light. The decrease in 
height must be uniform. The spacing must be uniform. Prepare 
the usual full page for the teacher. 


LESSON 40 . 

The Second Drill for Learning the Small Letter Phase of the Arm Movement. Practice lessons 6 and 15 briefly for preliminary work. 




The count for the 1 is 10 for the ten joined letters and the 
standard rate of speed is about 100 per minute after the small 
letter movement has been well learned. In beginning this drill 
the rate should be about SO per minute to observe proper inter¬ 
stroke pauses, but this speed should be gradually increased to 
100 by the time the lesson is considered finished. The small letter 
movement rule must be strictly adhered to. Each down stroke 
must be straight and slanted like the straight line drills in lessons 
5 and 6. The spacing between the joined letters must be uniform. 
The lines must be light. At the beginning of the practice it is 
not a serious error if the joinings at the bottoms are too angular, 


but they should be properly rounded before the lesson is consid¬ 
ered finished. The up strokes must be well curved. The crossings 
of the loops should be at the proper height for i. If the loops 
of perfect l’s are cut off at the crossings the remaining parts 
will be perfect i’s. If the crossings are too high the down strokes 
must be slanted more or the up strokes curved more. If the cross¬ 
ings are too low the down strokes must be slanted less or the up 
strokes curved less. The l’s should be made as high as the capitals. 
The disjoined letters in the copy are to emphasize the small let¬ 
ter movement rule. Prepare the usual full page for the teacher. 


LESSON 41 

The Third Drill for Learning the Small Letter Phase of the Arm Movement. Practice lessons 5 and 16 briefly for preliminary work. 


The count for this drill is 3 — one count on each down stroke. 
The rule governing the small letter movement must be strictly 
applied for each of the three parts in the two letters. The standard 
rate of speed in beginning this drill is about SO letters per minute, 
which permits of sufficient pause after each part (up-and-down 
stroke) to insure applying the small letter movement rule. This 


rate should be increased to about 100 letters per minute by the 
time the lesson has been finished. The parts of the u must be of 
equal height and of even height with the crossing in the 1. All 
the down strokes must be straight and on the slant of the straight 
line drills in lessons 5 and 6. It is of the utmost importance to 
avoid using a rolling movement, which is certain to result if the 



258 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


stops at tlie bottoms of the straight clown strokes are ignored. The 
movement is similar to taking steps in walking, and not like the 
gliding strides in skating. It is the ratchet form of movement. 
The individual movements must be quick. The stops between the 
succession of movements must be distinct, of uniform duration, 


and uniformly shortened as the practice proceeds. The sense and 
application of time must be as carefully developed as in music. 
It must be remembered that in learning the process is more im¬ 
portant than the product. Make the usual full page for the teacher. 


LESSON 42 

The Fourth Drill for Learning the Small Letter Phase of the Arm Movement. Practice lessons 5 and 6 briefly for preliminary work. 


The count for the b is 2 or 10 and the standard rate of speed to 
be attained at the beginning of the practice is about 60 per minute, 
which should be increased to about 80 by the time the lesson is 
finished. The new feature that needs particular attention in the 
b is the tick stroke at the top of the second part. This is a minute 
straight down stroke, retraced on the up stroke. It must be only 
about one-fifth the length of the second up stroke. The pen comes 
to a stop at the bottom of the tick stroke, the same as at the bot¬ 
tom of the long down stroke, thus bringing it under the small let¬ 
ter movement rule. The joining between the tick stroke and the 


final stroke must be made angular in practice, as the final stroke 
leaves the tick stroke practically at right angles. The part of the 
b below the crossing of the loop is the same form as the second 
part of w or the complete v. The second up stroke and the joined 
tick stroke are made on 2 in the count of 2, or on the even counts 
in the count of 10. The stop must be equally definite at the bot¬ 
tom of the long down stroke and at the bottom of the tick stroke, 
thus making two distinct small letter movement strokes. The tick 
stroke is necessary to make possible a correct joining to a follow¬ 
ing letter, especially e. Make the usual full page for the teacher. 


LESSON 43 

The Fifth Drill for Learning the Small Letter Phase of the Arm Movement. 


Practice lesson 5 briefly for preliminary work. 


The count for the e is 10 and the standard speed in beginning 
the practice is about 100 per minute, which should be gradually in¬ 
creased to about 120 per minute by the time the lesson is finished. 
This is one of the best drills for developing the small letter move¬ 
ment. It is the same form as the 1 but much smaller. The down 
strokes should be made straight, which necessitates the precise 
stop required by the S. L. M. rule. Uniformity in height and 
spacing must be observed. The slant must be the same as in 


lesson 5. The height of the e is the same as u. The glide from 
letter to letter is a movement feature that should have special at¬ 
tention. The loop must be clear. The lines must be light. The 
time must be accurate. No finger movement should be permitted. 
The wrist and fleshy part of the hand must not touch the desk. 
The finger rest must glide with every movement of the pen. This 
drill may be considered the true companion drill to the 1 as both 
are made with the same combination of motions, to the same 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


259 


count and in the same time. Additional movement value may be the page instead of only ten letters. This should be tried re¬ 
gained by connecting the greater part or all of the full line across peatedly. Make the full page for the teacher as usual. 


LESSON 44 

The Sixth Drill for Learning the Small Letter Phase of the Arm Movement. Practice lessons 5 and 7 briefly for preliminary work. 


The count for the v is 2 or 10 applied the same as in the b, and 
the standard of speed is the same as in the b. It is possible to 
develop a speed up to 120 letters per minute in the v with a 
highly perfected movement, and do creditable work. The v is the 
same form as the part of the b below the crossing of the loop, 
and also the same as the second part of the w. The tick stroke at 
the top of the second up stroke is of special importance. It must 
be straight and retraced on the up stroke. It must be short and 
the final horizontal stroke joins to the tick stroke with an angle. 
The second up stroke does not slant as much as the first. There 
is a pointed angle at the top of each up stroke. Making the tick 


stroke on the 2 in the count of 1-2 or on the even counts in the 
count of 10, is an exacting test of the movement and should be 
given very careful attention. The long down stroke must be 
straight. The small letter movement rule must be applied very 
strictly. The letter is the height of u and e. A loop placed at the 
top of the first part of the v will transform it into b. Prefixing 
the first up and down strokes of the i to the v changes it into w. 
Additional movement power may be developed by joining more 
than five, and this should be attempted to the extent of the full 
line. Prepare the usual full page for the teacher. 


LESSON 45 

The Seventh Drill for Learning the Small Letter Phase of the Arm Movement. Practice lessons 5 and 7 briefly for preliminary work. 



The count for the w is 3 and the standard rate of speed at the 
beginning of the practice is about 55 to 60 letters per minute, 
which should be increased to about 70 per minute by the time the 
lesson is finished. The two long down strokes and the short tick 
stroke should all be straight and on the slant of the straight line 
drills in lessons 5 and 6. Three quick distinct movements are 
required for making w and each must have the characteristic small 
letter movement stop at the bottom of it. The first part of 
the w, including the first two up strokes, is the form of i. The 
last part of w is the form of v. The last part is a little narrower 


than the first part, this being necessary to give the entire letter, 
with the final stroke, perfect proportions among all the parts. 
The three points at the top of the letter must be of even height. 
The turns at the bottom must be round but very short, to give 
the proper connection between the straight down strokes and the 
following up strokes. Undue roundness in these bottom turns will 
inevitably lead to making the down strokes curved. A nice glide in 
the movement is provided for in the connecting strokes. It is an 
additional good feature to make as many as possible without lift¬ 
ing the pen or shifting the paper or arm. Make the usual full page. 



260 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 46 

Practice lesson 6 briefly for preliminary work. 



NOTE-The seven preceding lessons are the small letters 

most perfectly adapted to the work of developing the Small 
Letter Movement. The succeeding letters (except c) all in¬ 
volve the characteristic Small Letter Movement, but some of 
them also require what may be termed a miniature Capital 
Letter Movement. The c, o and s and the ovals of a, d, g and 
q are made with the miniature Capital Letter Movement, and 
the loops in q, z, y, f, g and j are made with a blended Capital 
and Small Letter Movement. 

The f is made to the count of 2 for each letter, or 10 for the 
down strokes only. The standard rate of speed at the beginning 



of the practice should be about 60 per minute, which should be 
increased to about 80 by the time the lesson is finished. The part 
of the f above the line is the form of 1. The lower loop is the 
same as in q. The upper loop crosses at the height of i and the 
lower loop closes at the line. If the two loops were cut off a small 
i would remain. The long down stroke is straight and is one of 
the three longest straight down strokes in all the letters (f, Y and 
J). The letter may be practiced with a limited number joined at 
first but the number connected should be extended as much as 
possible as the practice continues. Prepare the usual full page. 


LESSON 47 

Practice lesson 7 briefly for preliminary work. 



The count for the c is 2 (making ihe dot on 1 and the down 
stroke on 2), or 10 (making the down strokes only to the counts). 
The standard rate of speed is about SO per minute at the beginning 
of the practice and 110 per minute by the time the lesson has been 
completed. The c introduces the use of the miniature capital 
letter movement in the small letter section of this course. It is 
based on the o, both as to curvature and slant. The turn at the 
top has the same curvature as the turn at the bottom of the o. 
The dot is curved downward quite sharply. The various curves of 
the c require minute examination. It is common either to base the 
form on the i, making the down stroke too nearly straight, or to 


curve it too broadiy. The siant must be like the down stroke in 
n, m, etc., and like the oval in the o; not like the oval in the a. 
As suggested for preceding lessons, efforts should be made to 
join as many letters as possible in one continuous movement. This 
ability is dependent upon what is called “range” or “scope” of 
movement. If the movement is sufficient to make the compact, 
continuous oval and straight line drills four spaces in height 
easily, it will be found possible to write a line seven and one-half 
inches in length without shifting the paper or arm. Make the 
usual full page. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


261 


LESSON 48 

Practice lessons 5 and 9 briefly for preliminary work.' 


The count for the cl is 2 for each letter, or 10 for five letters. 
The standard rate of speed should range from about 60 to 80 per 
minute, depending upon the progress made in mastering the les¬ 
sons. The initial oval of the d is made with a miniature capital 
letter movement but the loop is made with the distinctive small 
letter movement. The down stroke of the loop is straight and 
there must be the stop in the movement at the bottom of the 
stroke, required by the small letter movement rule. The d precedes 
the a because the loop offers greater small letter movement value 
than does the shorter straight down stroke in the a, although it, 


also, requires the application of the S. L. M. rule. The slant of 
the oval in d, a, g and q is the same as the up strokes in n and m; 
while the slant of the loop is the same as the down strokes in these 
letters. It should be especially noted that the ovals in d, a, g 
and q slant more than the oval of the o. When the d is used at 
the end of a word the final form is made. This has a curved 
down stroke and the pen is lifted while in motion as it is com¬ 
pleted. The crossing of the loop is at the top of the oval. If the 
loop were cut off an a would remain. The d is shorter and 
narrower than the 1. Make the usual full page for the teacher. 


LESSON 49 

Practice lessons S and 10 briefly for preliminary work. 






The a is made to the count of 2 for a single letter, or 10 for 
five letters. The standard rate of speed ranges from about 70 to 
90, depending upon the progress made toward mastering the les¬ 
son. The oval of the a is the same as the corresponding part of 
the d. The oval is made with the miniature capital letter move¬ 
ment, or oval movement, which is changed to the small letter 
movement on the up stroke of the oval. The up stroke of the oval 
and the following straight down stroke require a distinctive small 
letter movement, with the characteristic stop at the bottom of the 
straight stroke. There should be no retrace at the top where the 
straight line begins. If the oval is made correct in form and slant 


and the second down stroke is made straight and slanted properly, 
there can be no retrace. An accurately trained movement will 
embody these details in the letter without special effort, but it re¬ 
quires close study and great effort to train the movement so to 
operate. The connecting strokes between the letters are com¬ 
pound curves. As many letters as possible should be connected in 
one continuous movement. One letter added at the point where 
the movement seems to have reached its limit will mean so much 
added movement power. Additional letters will each help cor¬ 
respondingly. Make the usual full page for the teacher. 



262 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 50 

Practice lessons 5 and 7 briefly for preliminary work. 


The count for the q is 2 for one letter, or 10 for five letters. 
The standard rate of speed ranges from about 50 to 60 letters per 
minute depending upon the progress made in mastering the lessoh. 
The part of the q above the line is the same form as the a, or the 
part of the d below the crossing of the loop. The slant of the oval 
is greater than that of the loop. The oval has the same slant as 
the up strokes in n or m, and the loop the same as the down 
strokes in these letters. Retracing at the beginning of the long 
down stroke should be avoided as much as possible. The long 
down stroke is straight and is made with a composite capital and 
small letter movement. Since the loop extends below the line no 


stop is made at the bottom of it, as is necessary in making straight 
down strokes that rest on the line. This is because all loops ex¬ 
tending below the line are inverted loops, in which the straight 
down strokes are made first and are followed by curved strokes; 
whereas, in the upper loops the curved strokes are made first and 
are followed by the straight strokes. It will be noted that the 
process is reversed. If the 1, connected, were practiced in the in¬ 
verted position, the stops would have to be at the top to get the 
advantage of the small letter movement. The loops are closed at 
the line. Make the usual full page. 


LESSON 51 

Practice lessons 5 and 14 briefly for preliminary work. 



The count for the g is 2 for one letter, or 10 for five letters. 
The standard rate of speed ranges from about 60 to 70 letters per 
minute through the progress of the lesson. The oval and the fol¬ 
lowing straight down stroke to the line are the same form as the 
corresponding parts of d, a and q. The long down stroke is 
straight. The movement required is the miniature capital letter 
movement on the oval and a blended capital and small letter 
movement on the loop. The crossing of the loop is at the line. 
Accuracy in form and slant will prevent making a retrace in join¬ 
ing the loop to the oval. The length of the loop (as in all lower 


loops except that of the p) below the line is twice the length of 
the straight down strokes in i, e,' n, m and all minimum letters. 
The closed part of the loop; that is, from the line to the lower 
extremity, is the same length as the closed part of any loop but d 
above the line from the crossing to the upper extremity. Good 
writing must take account of such elements of uniformity of the 
loops. Much will be gained in extending the line of connected g’s 
as far as possible. The movement naturally recoils at the limita¬ 
tions of its field. These limitations may be indefinitely extended 
by proper practice. Make the usual full page. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


263 


LESSON 52 

Practice lessons 6 and S briefly for preliminary work. 



The count for the p is 2 for each letter, or 10 for a group of five 
letters, with all the counts falling on the down strokes. The 
standard rate of speed ranges from about 50 to 60 per minute in 
the process of learning the lesson. The movement value of the p 
is greater than of many other letters, because of the greater length 
of the straight down stroke, and the peculiar combination of the 
several parts. Retracing should be avoided as much as possible 
at the top. The letter extends as high above the line as the t and 
d and the second parts of N, M, V, U and Y but not as high as the 
capitals generally, or the upper loops. The loop below the line 


is narrower and shorter than the loops of q, y, f, g and j. The 
crossing of the loop is at the line. The final oval is closed at the 
point where the loop crosses. The lower loop and the final oval 
are the same as the corresponding parts of the d, but inverted. 
The final oval of the p is the same height as i. The paper should 
occasionally be inverted and some of the p’s finished into d’s to 
test their accuracy. The number connected should be extended 
as far as possible, making the drill reach entirely across the 
page if possible. The acquisition of movement power should be 
the constant aim. Make the usual full page. 


LESSON 53 

Practice lessons 5 and 36 briefly for preliminary work. 


rrr-rrrrrr 

The count for the j is 4 and the standard rate of speed ranges 
from about 60 to 70 letters per minute in covering the lesson. The 
counts fall on the two up and long down strokes and on the dot— 
the fourth count being for the dot. Special care must be exercised 
not to make a dash instead of a dot. The dot is in line with the 
long down stroke. The j is presented in disconnected letters be¬ 
cause the connecting stroke would have to be a compound curve 
and in practicing the letters connected with this stroke they are 
almost invariably made too high and thrown out of proportion 
generally. The entire loop stroke is the same form as the cor¬ 
responding part of the g. The letter begins and the loop crosses 



on the line. No retrace should be made at the top. Minute at¬ 
tention must be given to the length of the top part which is the 
same as in i. The loop in J and the loop in j below the line are 
alike in all details. These loops should be tested occasionally by 
converting j’s into J’s and J’s into j’s. The movement is a blended 
capital and small letter movement throughout. The long down 
stroke is straight. The two up strokes (above the line) are on 
the same slant. The j should also be tested by inverting it and 
converting it into 1. Merely changing the initial stroke to the op¬ 
posite curve will do this. Prepare the usual page for the teacher. 



264 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 54 

Practice lessons 5 and 8 briefly for preliminary work. 








The count for the first part of this lesson is 10 and for the z it 
is 2 for a single letter or 10 for five letters. The z is presented 
in disconnected form to prevent its being distorted in making the 
difficult connecting stroke—difficult because it tends to curve up 
excessively and consequently to make the top of the letter too 
large and too much rounded. The top part of the z is the same 
form as one section of n or m. The down stroke of the top part 
is straight, and the down stroke of the lower part should be made 
as nearly straight as possible. It is classed with the straight down 
strokes. The upper part is made with the true small letter move¬ 


ment, while the lower part is made with the blended capital and 
small letter movement. In the first part of the lesson it is of the 
greatest importance to make the down strokes straight and make 
the height, spacing and slant uniform. The miniature rolling 
capital letter movement must be carefully avoided. The angles at 
the bottoms of the successive parts must be sharp and all re¬ 
tracing should be considered objectionable. It is well to practice 
this drill double size for a time and then reduce to the regular 
small letter size. The minute horizontal curve between the two 
parts of the z needs extra attention. Make a full page. 


LESSON 55 

Practice lessons 5 and 17 briefly for preliminary work. 



The h is made to the count of 2 or 10 and the standard rate of 
speed ranges from about 60 to 70 through the development of 
the lesson. The movement required is the distinctive small letter 
movement, making two distinct movements for two parts, with the 
characteristic small letter movement stop at the bottom of each 
down stroke. The loop is the same form as all the upper small let¬ 
ter loops except that of d. The second part of the letter is the same 
form as the last part of n and m and the first part of x and y. 
The h is the same form in every detail as the y, but inverted. If 
all the parts are made accurately and given the proper relative 


slants there will be no retrace at any joining. The second part is 
of even height with the crossing of the loop, both of which are at 
the height of i and all minimum letters. The h offers an oppor¬ 
tunity of more than ordinary value for developing small letter 
movement power and should be studied and practiced to this end. 
As many letters should be connected as possible after the practice 
has progressed considerably, even to making the full line with¬ 
out shifting the arm or paper. The slant must be the same as in 
the straight line drills. The lines must be of the finest quality 
possible. Make the usual full page for the teacher. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


265 


LESSON 56 

Practice lessons 5 and 18 briefly for preliminary work. 


The k is made to the count of 3 and the standard rate of speed 
ranges from about 50 to 60 per minute as the development of the 
lesson progresses. The true small letter movement is required 
with three distinct movements, for the three counts. The count 
of 2 falls on the small loop ending in a stop at the top of the 
second part. The 3 is for the straight down stroke (and stop) 
which follows the minute loop. The initial loop is the same form 
as the corresponding part of h, and the second part to the right 
extremity of the minute loop is also the same form as the cor¬ 
responding part in h. The under turn in the minute loop is a very 
particular detail in the k. The minute loop has a horizontal posi¬ 


tion and is not closed. The two straight down strokes are par¬ 
allel. As many as possible of this letter should be made without 
lifting the pen or shifting the arm or paper. To make an addi¬ 
tional letter after the movement has apparently reached its limit, 
and to continue making such additions means to add, correspond¬ 
ingly, to the movement power. An expert penman can make a line 
of any letter or letters from nine to ten inches in length with¬ 
out lifting the pen or shifting the arm or paper. This is one of 
the best tests of movement power and should be made use of con¬ 
tinually. Prepare the usual full page for the teacher. 


LESSON 57 

Practice lessons 5 and 21 briefly for preliminary work. 





The x requires a double count of 10 and the standard rate of 
speed is from about 60 to 70 complete letters per minute. The 
first part of the letter is made in connected groups as a continuous 
stroke and the cross strokes are made afterward. The down 
strokes in the first part of the drill are all straight and parallel. 
The small letter movement must be used. The cross strokes are 
made with upward movements, since it is important that they be 
placed accurately on the line, and it is not of equal importance 
that they be even at the top, although they should be as nearly so 
as they can be made with a free movement. The first stroke offers 
an exceptionally good test stroke for the movement. The utmost 


care must be exercised to keep from making merely a wavy stroke. 
Each stroke involves a distinct movement with a straight down 
stroke on the proper slant. All parts of the completed letter must 
be the same when inverted. The cross strokes must be straight 
and parallel with the other two up strokes and midway between 
them. In practicing with the count the disconnected up strokes 
should be made to the count of 10. The connected first parts 
should be extended as nearly across the page as possible with one 
stroke. The first part of x is the same form as the last part of 
n, m and h and the first part of y. Make the usual full page. 



266 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 58 

Practice lessons 5 and 25 briefly for preliminary work. 


^rfirrT'T^rrfT^rrrrr^rrnnr 


The count for the y is 2 or 10 and the standard rate of speed 
ranges from 60 to 70 per minute depending upon the progress 
through the lesson. The letter is in every detail the same form 
as the h, but is, of course, inverted. It is to be made with the true 
small letter movement, but with only one stop, as the straight 
down stroke of the loop extends below the writing line. Both 
down strokes are straight and they must be parallel. With the 
correct slant and stroke forms there can be no retrace at the 
joinings. The first part of the y is the same form as the first part 
of x and the last parts of h, n and m. The crossing of the loop is 


at the line. The loop is the same size as all loops below the line, 
both in capital and small letters, except the loop in p, which is 
smaller. Not fewer than five letters should be connected with 
one continuous movement, and as many more as possible should be 
added without lifting the pen or shifting the arm or paper. The 
accuracy of the letter should be tested by adding the necessary 
strokes to the first part to make n, m and x, and by inverting it 
and examining it as an h. The lines must all be light and the 
movement smooth and free. Make the usual full page for the 
teacher. 


LESSON 59 

Practice lessons 5 and 18 briefly for preliminary work. 



The count for the r is 3 and the standard rate of speed re¬ 
quired is from about 90 to 100 letters per minute, as the progress 
through the lesson may determine. The counting must be rapid 
and is placed as follows: 1 on the initial up stroke; 2 on the 
short retrace and oblique from the top to the shoulder, and 3 for 
the straight down stroke and stop. This letter is one of two (r 
and s) forming a group designated the medial letters. They are 
slightly higher than the minimum letters, which is necessary to 
give them sufficient body to make them harmonize with the other 
small letters. The r must have a slight retrace at the top, and the 
oblique stroke is a left curve for the greater part of its length, 


changing to a right curve only in making the turn at the shoulder. 
Special care must be used to keep from turning upward to make 
the shoulder. The oblique stroke extends downward throughout 
its length. The shoulder should have a short turn and the fol¬ 
lowing down stroke is straight. The small letter movement, with 
its characteristic stop at the bottom of the straight down stroke, 
is used in making r. The movement almost stops at the shoulder, 
but no actual stop should be made. As many letters as possible 
should be connected without lifting the pen or shifting the arm or 
paper. Prepare the usual full page. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


267 


LESSON 60 

Practice lessons 8 and 32 briefly for preliminary work. 


The count for the s is 2 for each letter, or 10 for five letters. 
The standard rate of speed required is from 90 to 100 letters per 
minute, depending upon the progress through the lesson. To the 
point where the retrace in the top of the s ends this letter is 
practically the same form as the corresponding part of the r. The 
down stroke of the s is a continuous curve, being a compound 
curve with a well rounded turn for the bottom of the oval. The 
bottom turn should end with a slight dot on the initial stroke 
and a retrace must be made for the final stroke. The s belongs 
to the medial group, with the r, and is slightly higher than the 


letters of the minimum group. The down stroke requires very close 
attention to insure giving it the proper curvature at all points. The 
top part is a decided left curve, which is necessary to make the 
retrace. Making a loop at the top should be avoided, and it is no 
less objectionable to make the joining round. The initial stroke 
must be made a decided right curve. To make this stroke straight 
is of course erroneous, but to make it a left curve intolerably 
wrong. The up stroke has the curve found in the penmanship 
oval at the lower right side. Prepare the usual full page for the 
teacher. 


LESSON 61 

Practice lessons 5 and 39 briefly for preliminary work. 




The count for the t is 10 for ten letters without the cross strokes, 
and the standard speed requirement for the letter without the 
cross is from 90 to 100 per minute as the practice progresses 
through the lesson. There is practically no movement value in 
the cross stroke, so it may be omitted in most of the practice, but 
should be added for all work to be handed to the teacher. The 
true small letter movement is required in the t (without the 
cross), and the characteristic stop at the bottom of the straight 
down stroke should not be overlooked. The down stroke must be 
straight and on the same slant as the straight line drill. The up 


and down strokes join at the height of i, and it should be con¬ 
sidered a more serious error to make them join above than below 
this point. The t is the same height as the d and p, and the second 
parts of N, M, Y, U and Y, but is not as high as 1 and other loop 
letters, or the main parts of the capitals. The cross stroke is placed 
at about one-fourth of the distance down from the top and is 
straight and horizontal. The last letter in each group is the 
final t, which does not have a cross. This form is used only'at 
the ends of words. It has no retrace at top or bottom. Make a full 
page as usual for the teacher. 



268 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 62 

Practice lessons 5 and 39 briefly for preliminary work. 


In this sentence every down stroke in the small letters except 
the first in the d is straight. This necessitates the employment of 
the small letter movement. All the loops except in the d are of 
even height with the A. The d and t are the same height. The 
tick strokes in w and b need particular attention. It should be 
noted that no vertical spaces are left between the words, but the 
beginning point of each succeeding word is directly beneath the 
terminating point of the preceding word. This detail should never 
be lost sight of. Oval letters (o, c, a, q, d and g) have no intro¬ 
ductory strokes when they are used at the beginnings of words. 


The spacing between letters in words must be long enough to re¬ 
quire a distinct glide in the movement from letter to letter, espe¬ 
cially in practice work, as this gives necessary training. The 
crossings of all loops should be at the height of the i. Letters 
following w and b must be held to the proper height; they are 
usually made too high. Counts may be used in this lesson as 
follows : All — f ; will—6 ; be—3 ; well — 6 ; in — 3 ; due—5 ; time — 
6; 111—3. The sentence is especially constructed to give the fullest 
advantage to the small letter movement. All lines must be of fine 
quality. Prepare the usual full page for the teacher. 



LESSON 63 

Practice lessons 5 and 39 briefly for preliminary work. 





This sentence is designed to give additional definite advantage 
to the small letter movement. The down strokes in the small 
letters are all straight except in the o’s and s, in the first parts 
of q and a and in the oblique strokes in the r’s. This makes a 
total of only seven curved down strokes in the small letters of the 
sentence, while there are twenty-five straight down strokes. The 
movement which is required to make the stem of the T and the 
joined r and y is of extraordinary importance, because it requires 
the making of a transition from the pure capital letter move¬ 
ment, used in making the T-stem, to the pure small letter move¬ 
ment, required in the r and y. The process may be compared to 


skating on ice and suddenly arriving at the shore where walking 
steps are necessary. The absence of vertical inter-word spaces, 
except where initial oval letters are used, must be fully noted. The 
omission of introductory strokes from oval letters used at the be¬ 
ginnings of words accounts for the slight spaces left before the q 
and o in the lesson. Oval letters used at the beginnings of words 
must either have the introductory strokes attached or must have 
their omission duly indicated by the spaces, as mentioned. The 
spaces between the joined letters must be noted. The lines must 
be light. Make the usual full page. 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


269 


LESSON 64 

Practice lessons 5 and 39 briefly for preliminary ivork. 





This lesson, like the preceding two, is designed to give a special 
opportunity to apply the small letter movement to actual writing. 
It is not difficult to use the arm movement on the curved down 
strokes (8—in o, c, a, q, d, p, s and g) as it is merely a miniature 
capital letter movement, and words or sentences using a large pro¬ 
portion of such strokes (as, good, noon, coon, etc.) are of little 
value in mastering the small letters. It should be remembered 
that thirty-two of the forty down strokes in the small letter alpha¬ 
bet are straight, and that only about one-fifth of the down strokes 
in general writing are curved. This emphasizes the necessity of 


mastering the small letter movement thoroughly, so that it will 
come into use automatically; that is, without conscious effort, 
whenever any writing is undertaken. A proper habit once formed 
operates as easily and regularly as does an improper habit. Every 
effort should be made to develop proper habits in the writing 
nerves, and perfect concepts in the mind. Good concepts make 
writing accurate; good movement makes writing easy. The lines 
should be made as light as the pen will produce if properly 
handled. The inter-word spaces must be noted. The final t must 
be used. Make the full page as usual. 


LESSON 65 

Practice lessons 39 and 40 briefly for preliminary work. 



In practicing this lesson give particular attention to the follow¬ 
ing details: The four heights used in the small letter alphabet 
are illustrated as follows: The l’s are of even height (the height 
of the capitals and of all the small letters belonging to the ex¬ 
tended group) ; the t’s and d’s are of even height Cthe height of 
all the small letters belonging to the semi-extended group) ; the 
s and r are of even height (composing the medial group), and the 
remaining letters are all of even height (the height of all the 
small letters belonging to the minimum group). No vertical spaces 
are left beticeen words, except when the second word begins with 
an oval letter (a, c, d, g, o, q), or when the word ends with a final 


d. The spaces between the letters in words are quite long as com¬ 
pared with the widths of the letters themselves. The lines should 
all be of even quality and very light. Every down stroke in the 
small letters of the sentence, except in the s, in the ovals of the 
a’s and d’s, and in the long down stroke of the final d, is straight. 
The finger rest of the hand must glide freely from letter to letter. 
The true small letter movement must be used for making all the 
straight down strokes. The movement should be rapid enough to 
meet the standard requirements of speed. Prepare the usual full 
page for the teacher. 



270 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 66 

Practice lessons 7 and 40 briefly for preliminary work. 



This sentence illustrates practically all the important details of 
small letter structure, covering the following important features: 
The l’s, b and f’s belong to the extended group; the p, t’s and d 
belong to the semi-extended group; the r’s and s’s belong to the 
medial group, and all the remaining small letters belong to the 
minimum group. The regular spacing between words, showing the 
absence of the vertical space, is shown between all words except 
between “based” and “on.” This particular space shows the effect 
between a final d and an initial oval letter. The final d and t 
are shown. The tick stroke is used on v and b. The long spacing 


between letters in words is illustrated. The two lengths of lower 
loops (p and f) are given. The predominance of straight down 
strokes in an average sentence is noticeable. Uniformity of slant, 
height and spacing must be given careful attention, and every care 
must be used to employ only a free, smooth arm movement 
throughout, with the correct application of the small letter phase 
of the arm movement to all straight down strokes. Speed must 
always enter into the problem as a necessary element to freedom 
and regularity of motion. Prepare the usual full page for the 
teacher. 


LESSON 67 

Practice lessons 7 and 40 briefly for preliminary work. 



The student should by this time clearly understand that good 
concepts are fundamental in learning to write accurately; and 
that good movement is fundamental in learning to write easily. 
The movement, of course, determines the degree of accuracy dis¬ 
played in the written product, since the written forms cannot be 
better than the quality of movement control; but back of the 
movement there must be an apparently inexhaustible supply of 
mental energy. This energy is organized by thinking, feeling and 
willing. Learning to write well is a process of high educational 
value. In addition to the purely mental processes involved, it 
requires a very fine quality of physical training. It demands 




accurate thinking like the sciences and imaginative thinking like 
poetry, painting and music; but it also requires concentration of 
sufficient intensity to transform mere muscles, bones and nerves 
into a delicately adjusted writing machine, a machine so delicately 
adjusted that its responsiveness is not equaled in any other art 
except, perhaps, in playing a violin. Has the pursuit of this 
course brought a realization of these principles and processes to 
you? Are all the letter forms clearly defined in your mind? Is 
your movement habitual; that is, automatic, on all the letters? 
Prepare the usual full page for the teacher. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


271 


LESSON 68 

Practice lessons 39 and 40 briefly for preliminary work. 



The student should now understand clearly that mastery of a 
thoroughly organized writing course means mastery of the follow¬ 
ing elements of the course: 

1. That the three sections of the course are devoted, respectively, 
to mere movemnt, capital letter movement and small letter 
movement drills. 

2. That mastery of the mere movement section should result in 
the formation of an automatic or habitual arm movement. 

3. That the capitals are arranged in eight groups—each group 
having a common controlling stroke, and that the order of the 
groups, and also the order of the letters within the groups, is 
determined by their structures and their movement values and 
requirements. 


4. That the small letters belong to four groups, designated, re¬ 
spectively, minimum (aceinmouvwx), medial (r s), 
semi-extended (dpt) and extended (bfghjklqyz), and 
that they are arranged for study and practice according to 
their movement requirements. 

5. That the small letters require a special adaptation of the arm 
movement, designated as the small letter movement. 

The student should also realize that mastery of the course means 
that each letter is so clearly defined in his mind that he recognizes 
all the details of a letter instantly. Prepare the full page for the 
teacher as usual. 


LESSON 69 

/£<3+lsC °fo /jz oU<f 0 /£ o 4 / <f 0 


The numerals should be written with the arm movement, but 
since they must be made disconnected, they do not offer much 
movement value. They should be practiced because they should 
be learned. They may be said to form one of the great pivots upon 
which the machinery of business turns. Their legibility is one 
of the most salient factors in civilized life. The fate of countless 
millions of dollars has hung upon the interpretation of disputed 
figures. All the numerals, made poorly, have led to serious diffi¬ 
culties. The 1 should be merely a straight stroke. The 2 is the 
same as Q but smaller and should touch the line at two points. 
The 3 should have no straight lines and should have a distinct 
loop near the middle. The 4 is composed wholly of straight lines 


and has a sharp angle where the first two are joined. The 5 be¬ 
gins with a straight down stroke and the final straight stroke 
should join the first. The 6 has a small upright loop at the finish. 
The 7 begins with a tick stroke. The 8 begins with the oval turn, 
curved upward, and the beginning and final strokes must cross. 
The oval of 9 is like a but smaller. The 0 is like o. 

The 4 and 6 will look the best extended higher than the rest; 
And it improves the 7 and 9 if they extend below the line; 

But all the rest are only right when written at an even height. 

Prepare the usual full page for the teacher. 



272 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 70 



Omit the heading and commence the specimen on the top line. 
After the words “ Written by,” add the following: ( Your name), in 
(the name of your school), at (the name of your town), under 
the instruction of (the name of your teacher), (the date). Write 
the specimen twice on the page leaving two blank lines between. 
The value of this lesson should be determined by considering the 


accuracy and ease with which you are able to do body writing. 
The spacing between joined letters and between words, the uni¬ 
formity of slant and height and the quality of lines should have 
their full share of attention. The small letter movement should 
be demonstrated with unmistakable definiteness. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


273 


SECOND SEMESTER 

INTRODUCTION 


This part of the course is distinctly a “higher” course 
in penmanship. Part I of the course is complete in the 
sense that it covers all the phases of the arm movement 
and all the letters and numerals. It is, however, incom¬ 
plete in that it does not provide the necessary elaborate and 
intensive movement training that must be experienced by 
everyone who partakes at the wellspring of mastery. It is 
also incomplete in that it does not supply the wide range 
of rhaterial by which every element of the arm movement 
may be fully tested and by which the student may measure 
himself against the highest standards of skill in the subject. 

The mere movement drills in this Part involve the fea¬ 
tures of uniformity, compactness, scope, form, arrange¬ 
ment and touch to a degree that will bring the movement 
quality of all who master them up to the plane of the ex¬ 
pert. The capital letter lessons are constructed to require 
the development of reserve power and positiveness in the 


arm movement to a degree that will make the highest skill 
seem possible and easy of attainment. The small letter 
section provides training for and tests in this phase of the 
arm movement that must bring ability to execute the small 
letters with a high degree of accuracy and do so with ease 
and rapidity. The section devoted to signatures or mono¬ 
grams will afford unusual opportunities for the study of 
symmetry, accuracy and proportion in form, and speed, 
freedom and definiteness in movement. In the part of the 
work devoted to actual line and page writing the student 
will find material for study and practice that may be con¬ 
fidently said to make the work complete. 

The discussions covering all phases of movement are to 
be used in close connection with the lessons in this Part— 
in mere movement, capital letter movement and small letter 
movement work. Position and materials are also to be 
studied in the same way. 


SCHEDULE 

As in Part I of this course, the schedule is arranged on the basis 
of the customary semester of eighteen weeks, which is divided into 

First Six Weeks. 

Second Six Weeks... 

Third Six Weeks- 

The student should be required to work during the full six 
weeks in each instance on the lessons assigned to the six weeks’ 
period, unless he makes a grade of 95 per cent or more on each 
lesson scheduled for the six weeks in less time. If a grade of 95 
per cent or more is secured on some of the lessons of a given six 


three six weeks’ periods. The distribution of the lessons covered 
by Part II over the three six weeks’ periods is as follows: 

10 lessons 
30 lessons 
30 lessons 

weeks’ period, and not on others the student should be required to 
work on those ranking lowest until the six weeks expire. Students 
who attain the grade of 95 per cent or more on all lessons should 
be permitted to advance without regard to the schedule. 

More specifically stated, the plan is to adhere strictly to the 


Mere Movement Drills 
Capital Letter Drills and Small Letter Drills 
Signature Drills and Body Writing 









274 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


elaborated schedule for the successive weeks and not permit the 
student to advance from one week's work to the next unless the 
grade of 95 per cent or more is secured on each lesson scheduled 
for the week, or unless the week has expired. This arrangment 
makes it a fixed requirement that the student work on the lessons 
for the full time scheduled or that he show himself to be an ex¬ 
ceptional student by meriting the grade of 95 per cent or more 
on each lesson in less time. Good pedagogy requires that students 
of exceptional ability should not he restricted in their advance¬ 
ment by the rules applied to the general student body. 

Students should be required to re-write each lesson included 
within any week’s schedule as often as the time will permit and 
the best specimen only should be considered in determining the 
complete grade for the week. 

Students who complete the semester’s work in less than the full 
time by reason of having secured the grade of 95 per cent or more 
on each lesson, should be given credit for the full semester’s 
work. 

The schedule by weeks for the full semester is as follows: 

ELABORATED SCHEDULE 


First Six Weeks 

First week.Lessons 1, 2 

Second week .Lessons 3, 4 

Third week .Lessons 5, 6 

Fourth week .Lessons 7, S 

Fifth week .Lesson 9 

Sixth week.Lesson 10 

Second Six Weeks 

First week .Lessons 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 

Second week.Lessons 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 

Third week.Lessons 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 

Fourth week.Lessons 26, 27, 28, 29, 30 

Fifth week.Lessons 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 

Sixth week.Lessons 36, 37, 38, 39, 40 

Third Six Weeks 

First week.Lessons 41, 42, 43, 44, 45 

Second week. Lessons 46, 47, 48, 49, 50 


Third week.Lessons 51, 52, 53, 54, 55 

Fourth week .Lessons 56, 57, 5S, 59, 60 

Fifth week .Lessons 61, 62, 63, 64, 65 

Sixth week.Lessons 66, 67, 68, 69, 70 


The foregoing schedule is prepared on the assumption that pen¬ 
manship is offered as a laboratory subject for a double period dur¬ 
ing a semester, or for a single period with assignment for study 
and practice outside the recitation period equivalent to that 
usually required for academic subjects. On this basis the present 
text provides sufficient work to entitle the student who com¬ 
pletes it to a half unit credit. When a single period and no out¬ 
side assignments for work are used the time allotted by the 
schedule should be doubled and the full year of two semesters’ 
work should be required for a half unit of credit. 

THE PLAN OF THE COURSE 

In constructing the present course, Part II, the author has ad¬ 
hered to the pedagogic theory explained and followed in Part I, 
viz., that of devoting stated sections of the course to specific pur¬ 
poses in the process of arm movement development. These sec¬ 
tions are designated as follows: mere movement, capital letter 
movement, small letter movement. 

Each of these phases is capable of development to an indefinite 
degree, and success in acquiring skill in penmanship is measured 
by this development. Learners almost uniformly underestimate 
the importance of movement training and its importance is also 
often overlooked even by good penmen because they have not 
given the subject sufficiently close analysis. Writers on the peda¬ 
gogy of penmanship practically all show a lack of insight into 
the subject, a condition which is altogether natural, since no one 
can fully understand the technique or appreciate the meaning of 
arm movement mastery without having experienced the process 
of achieving this mastery. 

The widespread conviction fouud among teachers and theorists 
that ability to write well is due to “natural ability” and impossi¬ 
ble of attainment by the large majority of students is attributable 
largely to the failure to recognize how much depends upon 
movement training and how to secure this training. They do not 





















THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


275 


realize how much and what kind of practice is required to master 
the arm movement adequately. Some of the so-called “authorities” 
have even taken the absurd position that writing should not be 
taught in the higher grades, not to mention in the high school, 
because “statistics” show that the large majority of students in 
these grades make no worth-while progress in the subject. They 
fail to understand that the trouble is not with the students or 
with the subject, but is due wholly to incorrect teaching. 

In the present work such a foundation in arm movement is laid 
that those who master the mere movement section will find them¬ 
selves prepared to overcome every obstacle with confidence and 
expedition as they pursue their way toward the goal of perfect 
penmanship. This section offers a type and range of drills not 
hitherto presented in any work on the subject, each one of which 
embodies one or more elements of primary importance in master¬ 
ing penmanship. These drills are followed hy a series of capital 
letter movement drills that must build into any movement that 


properly compasses them the virtues of extraordinary mastery. 
Following the straight capital letter movement drills is pre¬ 
sented a series of exceptionally important small letter movement 
drills, and combined capital and small letter movement drills. 
The small letter drills are followed by a comprehensive assort¬ 
ment of monograms, typical of practical signatures, which give 
the highest possible tests in writing the capitals. The last di¬ 
vision of the course is devoted to body writing, which is the 
ultimate aim of all study and practice in plain penmanship. This 
part of the course covers business forms, the numerals, paragraph 
work and the elements of business correspondence, making the 
course as complete as the highest skill in executing and the 
broadest experience in teaching the subject can suggest. Through 
the course the idea of adequate arm movement power is meant to 
be paramount and every lesson should be studied and practiced 
with the view to making it contribute as much as possible to 
this end. 


LESSON 1 



Maintain a correct writing position. Relax all muscles as com- Note that the penholder stands at an angle of 45 degrees. See that 

pletely as possible, especially those in the writing arm and hand. the pen is not rolled to one side or the other, but that both nibs 









276 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


come squarely to the paper. Do not bend the first joint of the 
first finger down but preserve a regular arch in this finger. Make 
this drill four ruled spaces of the paper in height ( % inch ruling) 
and in the direction indicated by the arrow. Make the ovals the 
form of O. Make the slant toward the right. Make the work 


uniform and very compact. Practice with great speed, making 
150 or more revolutions a minute. Make the lines of the most 
perfect lightness. Make two lines of work on the page, leaving a 
blank space under the heading and between the two lines of 
work. The count is 10. 


LESSON 2 



Make all required adjustments of position, penholding and place¬ 
ment of paper. Relax all muscles as fully as possible, especially 
in the writing arm. Make this drill four ruled spaces of the paper 
in height and in the direction indicated by the arrow. Make the 
lines as light as possible and make the work uniform and very 
compact. Hold the ovals to the true penmanship oval form ; that 
is, the form of the O, which is about two-thirds as wide as long. 


Make all the work slant toward the right, either hand. Use a rapid 
motion and keep the movement going without interruption for as 
long a time as possible. Maintain as uniform a speed as possible. 
Avoid gripping the penholder. See that the down strokes are no 
heavier than the up strokes. Make the heading and two lines of 
work on the page. The count is 10. 


LESSON 3 


Maintain a good position. Relax the muscles. Maintain the 
arch in the first finger. In this drill a fine line may be drawn 
with a pencil for the diagonal edge. The drill should be made 
four ruled spaces in height and in the direction indicated by the 


arrow. The oval form of the O should be strictly observed and 
the slant should be toward the right. The lines should be the 
finest it is possible to produce. The line quality indicates the 
touch, which should be painstakingly cultivated in all penmanship 






THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


277 



practice. The motion should be rapid, uniform and continuous — 
free from breaks and spurts. The work should be made more 
compact than is apparent in the copy, as much of the fine line 


quality and compactness of the original was unavoidably lost in 
engraving. Make the heading and two lines of work on the page. 
The count is 10. 


LESSON 4 









278 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


Assume the correct position. Hold the penholder at an angle 
of 45 degrees and make it point between the elbow and shoulder. 
Keep the wrist raised slightly from the desk. Make this drill foiir 
ruled spaces in height with a forward-backward movement. Be 
sure to avoid using a side swing. Keep the paper in the same 
position as for making lessons 1 and 2; also maintain the same 
relation of the arm and paper. The slant is produced auto¬ 
matically and is determined by the physiological structure of the 


arm. As the hand is pushed forward the muscles will auto¬ 
matically cause it to swing toward the right (for right-handed 
persons) slightly, and back toward the left as it is drawn back¬ 
ward. Left-handed persons must pull the hand toward the right 
on the up strokes. Use a rapid, continuous, uniform movement. 
Make the lines light. Make the usual heading and two lines of 
work on the page. The count is 10. 


LESSON 5 



Note all the elements of position and penholding. This drill 
covers three ruled spaces the same as lesson 5. First make line 
one complete, with the successive ovals merely touching one an¬ 
other. Next make line three in the next space below line one, 
observing to make the ovals stand at the regular penmanship slant 
with the ovals of line one, and make them in the same direction 
as those of line one. Next make line five in the space below line 
three, still maintaining the regular penmanship slant with the 


ovals of lines one and two. Make the ovals in the direction indi¬ 
cated by the arrow. Next make line two; then line four, both in 
the direction indicated by the arrows. Care must be exercised 
to place the ovals in such relations to each other as to make the 
completed design show the diagonal slants. Retrace each oval 
rapidly twenty times and note especially that no blur or tangled 
effect is produced where the ovals touch each other. Make three 
sets on the page. The count is 10. 


LESSON 6 


Check up the details of position. Relax the muscles. Hold the 
penholder at an angle of 45 degrees and make it point between the 
elbow and the shoulder. Keep the wrist and fleshy part of the 
hand raised from the desk. Make each line of ovals in the drill 
one ruled space in height. Make the first, third and fifth rows 


of ovals first and in three consecutive spaces; then make the 
second and fourth rows, each row extending half above and half 
below a ruled line. Make the ovals in the direction indicated by the 
arrows and retrace each oval twenty times. After completing a 
section like the copy (five rows of ovals) miss one space and re- 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


279 



peat the design, thus making it three times on the page. Always 
leave a single blank space under the heading. Note that the ovals 
overlap about half way. Use a rapid motion and make the lines 


very light. Aim to secure uniformity in size, slant and spacing. 
Great care must be used to avoid producing a tangled appearance. 
All the ovals must stand out in clear relief. The count is 10. 


LESSON 7 



tLXtmi 


Check up the details of position, penholding, relaxation, place¬ 
ment of paper. Keep the wrist free from the desk. Note the posi¬ 
tion of the first finger! In this drill make the alternate numbers 
(first, third, fifth, etc.) of the first line of upright ovals first. 
Then make the small horizontal ovals within the upright ovals 
just completed. Next make the even numbers of ovals (second, 
fourth, etc.), thus completing the first line of the drill. Repeat 
the process for the two succeeding lines of the design. Repeat 


each oval rapidly twenty times. The greatest possible care must 
be exercised to make the inner ovals horizontal, and contained 
exactly within the width of the upright ovals. Any inclination or 
slant in the inner ovals should be considered incorrect. A clean- 
cut effect should be aimed at in all details of the drill. Blurred 
and tangled joinings are evidences of defective pen-holding and 
movement. Note the half-over-lap feature that runs throughout the 
figure. Make the design three times on the page. The count is 10. 







280 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 8 



Correct any irregularities in position and penholding. In this 
drill make the line of the largest ovals first, making them two 
ruled spaces in height and in the direction indicated by the arrow. 
Make them overlap slightly—about one-fourth or one-fifth their 
width. Next make the inner upright ovals, using the indirect 
movement, as indicated by the arrow. Next make the smaller of 
the two horizontal ovals, placing it accurately within the inner up¬ 
right oval. Next make the larger horizontal oval. Numerous de¬ 


tails demand extraordinary attention in this design. The two 
upright ovals must have the same slant; must be parallel, and 
must have the true penmanship oval form—-two-thirds as wide as 
long. The two horizontal ovals must be truly horizontal. .All the 
ovals must be so placed and the crossings must be so forrneu that 
there will be a clean-cut effect produced by the completed design. 
Retrace each oval rapidly twenty times. Make four lines of the 
drill on the page, with intervening blank spaces. The count is 10. 


LESSON 9 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


281 


Assume the correct position in all details. In this drill first 
make a full line of the three horizontal ovals and then complete 
the line by making the two upright ovals at the valleys of the 
horizontal ovals. All ovals in this drill are to be made with the 
direct motion as indicated by the arrows. The outer ovals in both 
the horizontal and the upright sets should be one ruled space in 
height. Parallelism is an element of the greatest importance in 


this drill and every effort should be made to preserve a perfectly 
clean-cut appearance throughout the whole design. The manner in 
which both the horizontal and upright groups run in diagonal 
lines should be noted. In extremely accurate work on this design 
extended wavy lines will be seen to run diagonally across the 
figure through the upright ovals. Retrace each oval rapidly 
twenty times. Make the design twice on the page. The count is 10. 


LESSON 10 



Give the position due consideration. This drill offers an almost 
supreme test of the arm movement, when judged from the mere 
movement standpoint. Each section, comprised of five regularly 
diminishing ovals, and the oblique straight line, should be com¬ 
pleted in order. The successive ovals of each section should be 
made in the direction indicated by the arrows. The outer oval 
and the oblique straight line should be four ruled spaces in height. 
The overlap of the outer ovals should be such as to leave merely 


a good space for the oblique straight line. Each oval and the 
straight line should be retraced twenty times. One of the most 
important elements in the drill is to preserve clean and distinct 
white spaces between the successive ovals in each section. A rapid 
movement should be maintained at all times. The aim is to de¬ 
velop movement power and this cannot be done without speed. 
Make the design twice on the page. The count is 10. 


LESSON 11 

The count for this drill is 2 or 10, the even counts falling to the all possible attention in practicing this drill; viz., (1) Make the 
connecting strokes. There are four features that should be given full line without stopping, or lifting the pen, or shifting the posi- 




282 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



tion; (2) Use a rapid movement; (3) Preserve the true form of 
the O, and (4) Make the work throughout the line uniform. The 
lesson must be looked upon as a movement drill and unless it is 
practiced rapidly and with a continuous motion entirely across the 
line it loses its highest value. It should be practiced until it can 
be made easily as a full line drill without lifting the pen. A 
movement that can accomplish this possesses the elements nec¬ 
essary to attain the highest success. Make all of the lines of the 
lightest possible quality. It is important to make the spacing uni¬ 
form and to make the letters stand accurately on the line. The 
letters should be less than a ruled space of the paper in height. 


The connecting loop at the beginning of each letter, after the 
first, should be slightly larger than the loop at the close of the 
letter. The connecting stroke is a plain down, or right curve, 
and intersects the sides of the letter at the middle. The minute 
loop in the top formed by the overlapping of the initial and final 
loops, should have the same slant as the main body of the letter. 
The slant of the letter should be the same as in the oblique 
straight line drill. 

This drill should be written on every line except the first line 
under the heading and the same number should be placed on a 
line as in the copy, with the same spacing. 


LESSON 12 



The count for this drill is 2 or 10, the even counts falling to the 
connecting strokes. The same four features specified for lesson 
11 are of equal importance in connection with this lesson. Espe¬ 
cially should the movement be made to carry entirely across the 
page without stopping, breaking or hesitating. The number on 
the line and the spacing should be the same as in the copy. The 
movement should be rapid. A slow movement cannot accomplish 
anything worth while in the way of building up reserve power, 
which is the purpose of the drill. The form should be made a little 
less than a ruled space in height. The minute loop should have 
the same slant as the main oval, and should be the same as in the 
oblique straight line drill. To tip the top of the minute loop 
toward the left is especially bad. The drill should not be con¬ 
sidered learned until it can be made with considerable ease line 


after line with a rapid, continuous movement for the full line. 
The matter of adjusting the arm to the paper, or the paper to 
the arm is important in mastering the range required in this and 
similar drills, and this matter of making the proper adjustments 
should be carefully considered until it becomes, at last, habitual, 
and will be assumed as naturally as taking the proper position, 
without special thought. Placing the arm a little farther to the 
right or left will often add considerable advantage. It is also 
important to see that the movement has sufficient play both 
forward and backward in commencing the line. If the movement 
be extended or contracted too far at the beginning of the line, it 
will soon reach its limits and become cramped. Write the lesson 
on every line except the first under the heading. 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


283 


LESSON 13 



The count for this drill is 2 or 10, all the counts falling to the 
down strokes. The drill must be made with one continuous stroke, 
and without stopping, hesitating or making a break for the entire 
line. The position assumed at the beginning of the line should be 
maintained throughout the line. The arm should not be per¬ 
mitted to slip but all the reach required should be supplied by 
the stretching of the skin muscles at the arm rest. It is this reach 
or scope that measures the reserve power in the movement, and 
it is the reserve power that makes it possible to write accurately, 
with ease and rapidity, and without tiring. This drill should be 
practiced with a rapid movement, writing to a count almost as 
rapid as that used for the two space compact oval. The top part 
of the E should be half as long as the lower part, or one-third 
the length of the letter. A straight line drawn along the outer 


points of the curves in the two parts should be on the same slant 
as the oblique straight line drill, and the minute loop should stand 
at right angles to the slant of such a straight line. The position 
of the minute loop is a very important consideration. This loop 
should never be made to point upward at the right end. The 
letters should be a little less than a ruled space in height; should 
be spaced about as in the copy, and the line should be made as 
long as the copy. The lower turn of the letter should rest on the 
ruled line. It should nojt be overlooked that with the speed at 
which this drill should be practiced, rigid attention must be given 
to the form so the movement may be trained to approach con¬ 
tinually more and more closely to the state where it will move in 
perfect obedience to a mind that conceives the perfect form. Write 
the lesson on every line except the first under the heading. 


LESSON 14 



The count for this drill is 3, the 1 and 2 falling to the two down 
strokes and the 3 to the connecting oval that extends across the 
letter. The large final oval and the connecting oval should both 
be placed horizontally. This is a very important feature and one 
that may require special effort. The main body of the letter 
should be comparatively narrow and the letter should be closed at 
the top. The body of the letter should rest on the ruled line and 
the final oval should stand half below and half above the line. A 
line drawn through the middle of the connecting oval, lengthwise, 


will pass through the middle of the letter, measured vertically. 
The space between the top of the connecting oval and the top of 
the letter is the same width as the space between the bottom of 
the connecting oval and the bottom of the letter; that is, the base 
line. The up stroke in the body of the letter has only a slight 
curve and the second down stroke of the letter is practically 
straight for the first two-thirds of its length. It is in earnestly 
trying to make the movement execute these finer details that the 
highest skill is developed, and the perfecting of the concepts and 







284 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


training of the movement are the real purpose of penmanship 
practice. This drill should be made with a rapid movement and 
with a continuous stroke. The pen should not be lifted or the 
movement broken, or the position shifted until the line has been 
completed. No loop should be made at the angle where the body 


of the letter is closed, and the retrace should be as slight as 
possible. All the lines should be light. The spacing and number 
on the line should be the same as in the copy. The lesson may 
be written on every line except the first line under the heading, 
or on alternate lines, if the page effect can be improved thereby. 


LESSON 15 



This drill is made to the count of 3, 1 on the long connecting 
stroke and 2 and 3 on the two parts of the down stroke. If a 
straight line be drawn to touch the outer parts of the curves of 
the two parts of the down stroke it will be on the slant of the 
oblique straight line drill, and the minute loop near the middle of 
the down stroke stands at right angles to the slant of this 
straight stroke. It is a serious fault to make the minute loop tip 
downward at the left end. It is also a serious fault to make the 
lower part of the main down stroke vertical with the top part, 
or project toward the right of it. It must be set under and 
toward the left far enough to give the letter the proper slant. The 
loop at the base line lies flat on the line. Special care should be 
exercised not to make this loop tip up at either end. After making 
the loop at the base line, the stroke is brought down to the line 


o' 

before starting upward for making the next letter. The entire line 
must be made with one continuous, rapid movement. No change 
of position of the arm or paper should be permitted and there 
should be no break or hesitation in the movement. A clean, free 
swing with a uniform as well as rapid motion is necessary to se¬ 
cure the benefit that the drill is designed to produce in increasing 
the reserve power and control of the movement. Make all the lines 
very fine. Improvement in touch is always an important element 
in all penmanship practice. Make the spacing and the number of 
letters on the line the same as in the copy. Make the letters a 
little less than a ruled space in height. Make the top turn full 
and smooth. Avoid angularities of any kind at any part of the 
drill. Make the lesson on every line except the first under the 
heading. 


LESSON 16 




This drill is made to the count of 4, the 4 falling to the con¬ 
necting oval which encloses the minute loop. This drill embodies 
wonderful possibilities for increasing reserve power and control of 
movement. It is composed wholly of curves and turns so woven 


together as to require a high degree of skill to make them rapidly 
and with a smooth, continuous movement. It should be practiced 
until all resisting qualities of the movement disappear and until 
it can be made with entire ease for the full line without shifting 


i 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


285 


the position of the arm or paper, and without breaks of any kind 
in the movement. Among the finer details to be noted are that the 
connecting oval intersects both parts of the down stroke at their 
middle points, and divides the space at the left of the minute loop 
at the middle. The letter rests on the line at two points. The 
turn at the top is full and graceful. The minute loop near the 
middle stands at right angles to the slant of the letter. The part 
below the minute loop stands slightly toward the left of the part 
above the loop, to give the body of the letter the correct slant. The 


lines must all be made very fine, but a clear, unbroken line quality 
should be maintained. The lines should not be so light as to be 
indistinct. A line drawn through the minute loop and extended 
across the letter should divide it in halves. Make the spacing and 
the number of letters on the line the same as in the copy. Make 
the letters a little less than a ruled space in height. Make 'the 
copy on every line except the first line under the heading and try 
to make the letters run in columns to show that the spacing is 
uniform. 


LESSON 17 



This drill is made to the count of 4, the 4 falling to the con¬ 
necting oval, which stands at right angles to the slant of the 
main down strokes of the letter, and is placed half above and half 
below the line. This drill introduces a new feature, that of straight 
down strokes. The four preceding capital letter movement drills 
embodied only curved strokes. The three down strokes of the 
M are all straight. The letter rests on the line at three points. 
There should be no loops and the slightest possible amount of re¬ 
trace at the bottoms of the first two parts. At the top of the 
letter are three turns, one broad and two short. The successive 
parts taper off evenly in height. The second and third parts are 
spaced alike. Special care must be used to keep from making the 
third part as high as or higher than the second part, and also to 
keep from making it pointed at the top. The compound curve in 


the connecting stroke is a feature that must not be slighted. The 
pen must come to a perfect stop at the bottom of each of the first 
and second down strokes, and if necessary to make a very short 
turn, a stop should also be made at the bottom of the third part. 
The position of the arm and paper should never be shifted and the 
pen should not be lifted until the line has been completed. The 
relation of the paper and arm should be studied and experimented 
with as much as necessary to find the position at which the arm 
should be placed to give the movement the fullest advantage for 
writing. It will be found that the best place for the arm is just 
toward the right of the middle of the paper. Before starting the 
line it is a good plan to test the movement by seeing if it is- pos¬ 
sible to reach all parts of the line. Write on every line except the 
first under the heading. 



LESSON 18 



286 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


This drill is made to the count of 2 or 10, the even counts falling 
to the connecting ovals. The initial oval in this drill is the same 
as in the preceding drill, except that the down stroke is a slight 
compound curve instead of a straight line. The second part of 
the letter is the same height as the second part of the M. The 
connecting oval stands at right angles to the down stroke of the 
letter and extends below the line. This connecting oval extends 
higher than the corresponding oval in the preceding drill, and 
therefore does not extend as far below the line. The connecting 
oval in this drill extends as far below the line as the first part 
exceeds the second part in height, which makes the full vertical 
height of the connecting oval the same as the full vertical height 
of the first part of the letter. Special care must be exercised not 
to make the second up stroke swing away from the first part of 


the letter too far, thus making the letter too wide. It should be 
noted that the second up stroke is a compound curve. This drill 
is comprised wholly of curves, two of which are slight but per¬ 
fectly balanced compound curves, and a high degree of movement 
control is required to make it accurately. It is a common fault to 
make the letter angular at the bottom, and such a fault should be 
considered a serious error. Considerable speed can be developed 
in making this drill, and with the speed must go increased atten¬ 
tion to controlling the movement so that it may learn to obey the 
will with precision. No break should be permitted in the move¬ 
ment for the full line. All the lines must be light. The spacing 
must be uniform and should be like the copy. The height and slant 
must also be uniform. Write on every line except the first under 
the heading. 


LESSON 19 




This drill is made to the count of 8, the 3 falling to the con¬ 
necting oval. The initial oval is the same as the corresponding 
part in the preceding drill. The first down stroke is a slight com¬ 
pound curve as in the preceding letter. The second down stroke 
is a straight line. The second part does not extend as high as the 
first but is the same as the second part of the M and Y. The 
connecting oval stands at right angles to the slant of the letter, 
and extends below the line the same as in the corresponding part 
of the preceding drill. No loop should be made at the top of the 
second part and the retrace should be as slight as possible. The 
two turns at the bottom should be of equal width, but the final 
up stroke must slant much more than the one between the two 
parts of the letter for making the connected drill. Uniformity in 
spacing, slant and size are important elements and should be 
given the fullest attention. The letter rests on the line at two 


points. The effort to maintain a smooth and continuous move¬ 
ment throughout the line should receive the most earnest atten¬ 
tion in all the capital letter movement drills. That it seems dif¬ 
ficult to do this can indicate but one thing; viz., that there is a 
lack of scope or reserve power in the movement. It is the pur¬ 
pose of these drills to so develop the movement that it will obey 
the mind without hesitation and execute all penmanship forms 
with ease. As the movement becomes trained to follow the drill 
with greater freedom and ease the speed and accuracy should be 
increased. This will mean that the attention must be intensified. 
It should be considered a pleasure to be moving in the direction of 
mastery, and intensified attention should he given with en¬ 
thusiasm. Write the drill on all lines except the first under the 
heading. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


287 


LESSON 20 


This drill is made to the count of 2 or 10, the even counts fall¬ 
ing on the down strokes. The loop at the top is half the length 
of the letter. The letter touches the line at two points. A full 
stop is necessary at the point where the stem ends and the suc¬ 
ceeding letter begins. The swing of this drill is one that will 
admit of the most perfect rhythm in movement, and special care 
must be exercised to keep from slighting the fine proportions of 
the letter in the easy glide of the movement. The two sides of 
the top loop have strokes of equal curvature. The long down 
stroke changes from a left to a right curve at the crossing of the 
loop. The lower part of the letter has a broad turn where it rests 
on the line. The loop at the bottom is narrow. All possible care 
should be given to the spacing and uniformity of slant and size. 
The letter should be the same height as all capital letters—a 


little less than a ruled space. The movement must be continuous 
for the entire line and there must he no change in position of arm 
or paper as the pen progresses across the line. To lift the pen or 
shift the position because it is easier is to dodge the course that 
offers increased movement power. He who admires skill should 
welcome the tasks that help to produce it. The long up stroke 
in this drill needs particular attention to give it sufficient curve. 
Examining it throughout its length it will be seen to have the 
long sweeping curve of the bottom of the three space oval. The 
light touch should be guarded and improved constantly. Relaxed 
muscles are necessary to a light touch. With every lesson the 
concept should be improved and the touch and the control moved 
somewhat toward perfection. Make the drill on every line except 
the first line under the heading. 


LESSON 21 



This drill is made to the count of 3, 1 on the up stroke and 2 
and 3 on the two parts of the down stroke. The long connecting 
stroke, the loop at the top and the bottom part are the same as in 
the preceding drill. The second part of the letter extends upward 
half the height of the loop. There is no loop or retrace at the 
top of the second part. Particular attention should be given to 
the differences in height of the first and second parts. The swing 
in the movement required for this drill is very similar to that of 
the preceding drill and is one of unusual smoothness and value 
in movement training. Light lines are a prime requisite, as in¬ 
dicating the quality of touch. It should be noted that in all these 


capital letter movement drills the oval movements are constantly 
recurring. Careful analysis will show that a line might be ex¬ 
tended upward from the top of the second part around to the top 
of the letter, and making a perfect oval. In like manner a line 
might be extended from the top of the second part, across the 
top of the letter and down to the point where the stem terminates, 
and form a perfect oval. The long connecting stroke is an arc 
in a large oval. Capitals are perfect only when their curves are 
arcs of perfect ovals. It is this principle that explains why let¬ 
ters have the forms they have. A perfect movement makes letters 
that embody the perfect oval. If the arm movement has a scien- 







288 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


tific basis and can be operated with mechanical accuracy, it must explanation of the letters presented in this text. Make the drill 

follow that letters can be scientifically constructed. Such is the on every line except the first line under the heading. 


LESSON 22 



This drill is made to the count of 3, with the 3 on the long down 
stroke of the letter, the 1 on the long connecting stroke and the 2 
on the main up stroke of the letter. The connecting oval stands at 
right angles to the slant of the letter and extends slightly below 
the line. The crossing of the loop and of the final stroke are at 
the same point. The compound curve in the connecting stroke re¬ 
quires special study. Great care must be used to give the letter 
the correct slant as it is a very common error to make it vertical 
or even slanted toward the left instead of toward the right, uni¬ 
formly with all other letters. If it is found difficult to make the 
letter slant sufficiently toward the right, the up stroke should be 
given special attention, slanting it somewhat excessively until the 
habit of slant begins to form. The first four capital letter move¬ 


ment drills employed the direct oval movement; the next five 
used the indirect oval movement; the next two used the direct 
oval movement, and this drill again reverts to the indirect move¬ 
ment. In some of the drills both forms of the movement are used. 
With increased study and practice these drills will be found to 
embody many valuable movement features, and their mastery 
means very much in the process of learning to write accurately 
and with ease. This drill must be practiced until it can be made 
rapidly while maintaining accuracy. The full line should be made 
without lifting the pen or modifying the position. Relaxed mus¬ 
cles are necessary for lightness of touch and freedom and ease of 
movement, as well as a safeguard against fatigue. Make the 
drill on every line except the first line under the heading. 


LESSON 23 



This- drill is made to the count of 3, w r ith the 1 on the main 
down stroke, the 2 on the short down stroke that passes over the 
top of the stem and the 3 on the connecting stroke. Many details 
call for special consideration in this drill. The main stem is a 
compound curve, with an intense left curve near the top. The 
main oval is broad and of equal width at the top and bottom. The 
second down stroke crosses the stem near the top. The loop formed 
between the upper part of the stem and the second down stroke is 


very narrow. The second down stroke turns upward at the finish. 
The connecting stroke is a compound curve. A slight retrace (not 
a loop) is made at the joining of the connecting stroke and the 
succeeding letter. It is especially bad to make the body of the 
letter narrow or peaked at the top or to make the part toward the 
right of the upper part of the stem too wide. It should be re¬ 
membered that it is easier to make letters of correct form than 
incorrect when the movement has been trained properly, because a 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


289 


correctly trained movement will habitually run in the true oval 
form. With this fact in mind every effort should be made to 
direct the movement into the correct form in each letter as quickly 
as possible, thus not giving it harmful training in following in¬ 
correct forms any more than can be helped. The letter should be 
studied until it is thoroughly understood in every detail, and the 
movement should be held to this correct form as perfectly as 


possible from the beginning of practice. It is harmful to the 
movement to permit it to make the P broad at the bottom and 
ignore the full oval movement on the long up stroke, making a 
flat back and pointed top, as is often done by careless students. 
Make the drill on every line except the first line under the 
heading. 


LESSON 24 



The count for this drill is 4, the 1 falling to the initial down 
stroke, the 2 and 3 to the two parts of the second down stroke and 
the 4 to the connecting stroke. To the point just preceding the mi¬ 
nute loop this letter is the same form as the preceding letter. The 
minute loop is the same as was used in lessons 15 and 16, making 
it stand at right angles to the slant of the letter. This loop should 
be very small and should be placed across the stem stroke. The 
part of the down stroke below the loop is the same form as the 
part above the loop, and like it stands very close to the stem. The 
two parts of the second down stroke must be placed on the same 
slant as the stem, and, consequently, parallel with the stem. The 
full oval curves must be strictly observed. If the movement tends 
to slight these curves it should have more training on oval drills. 
Compel the movement to observe the elements of the true oval in 


all curves. There are no letters that offer a better opportunity to 
do this than this and the preceding and next following drills. The 
broad turn at the tops of these letters is one of the best tests of 
the movement to be found in any letters. The two stops that must 
be made in practicing this letter will, necessarily, make the 
progress across the line seem somewhat slow, but the movement, 
while going, should be as rapid as in all other drills. The spacing, 
the slant, the height must be uniform. The lines must be light 
and the position should be maintained without slipping or shifting 
until the line has been completed. It should not be overlooked 
that the top part of the second down stroke crosses the stem near 
the top in each letter. Make the drill on each line except the first 
line under the heading. 


LESSON 25 



The count for this drill is 4, arranged the same as for the pre- of the letter. The form to the completion of the minute loop is 
ceding drill, but there must be a slight hesitation between the 3 the same as in the B and the final stroke is a compound curve, 
and the 4 to allow for the peculiar short turn at the completion The connecting stroke is a compound curve, the same as in the 




290 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


two preceding drills. Attention is again called to the full oval 
form of the body of the letter, and especially to the broad turn at 
the top. The intense curve in the top part of the beginning stroke 
is an important feature and the manner in which the second down 
stroke crosses the initial stroke near the top must be observed. 
The turn at the finish of the letter requires almost a stop. The 
turn is short and is made at the line. The very narrow space be¬ 
tween the first and second down strokes is to be given special at¬ 
tention. The position of the minute loop, standing at right angles 
to the slant of the letter, must always be considered important 
in practice, because once the habit of making it so is formed it 
will need no further attention. The spacing, size and slant must 


be constantly kept in mind while practicing. The movement which 
determines these elements, as well as the curvature of the several 
parts, must be understood as being of fundamental importance. 
If the tendency is to flatten any part, to produce ill proportions 
or to vary in any respect from the specifications of the true pen¬ 
manship oval, it must be considered as indicating a defect in the 
movement. The slant must always be the same as revealed and 
established in practicing the oblique straight line drill. Perfect 
letters proceed from a perfectly trained movement—a movement 
trained under the guidance of a perfect concept. Write on every 
line except the first under the heading. 


LESSON 26 



This lesson introduces the small letter arm movement and this 
drill is as important in mastering this phase of movement as is 
the compact oval drill in learning the arm movement at the be¬ 
ginning. It should be mastered to the highest possible degree and 
should be reverted to almost daily and reviewed with painstaking 
thoroughness. In practicing this drill the rule which governs the 
small letter movement should be implicitly observed. This rule 
is stated as follows: Make a quick up-and-down movement and 
stop for every straight down stroke that rests on the writing line. 
Every element of this rule must be understood and applied. It 
will be noted that the drill is in sections, with ten straight down 
strokes in each section. In applying the rule an up stroke and the 
following straight down stroke are to be made with what is desig¬ 
nated a quick up-and-down movement. At the bottom of each 
straight down stroke the pen must come to a full stop. Thus the 



rule states: a quick up-and-down movement and stop. This pe¬ 
culiar feature of movement is applied only to making straight 
down strokes, and then only when the straight down strokes rest 
on the writing line. It is not applied to straight down strokes 
that extend below the writing line, as in the f, y and g. The im¬ 
portance of the rule will be appreciated when it is considered that 
of the 2S down strokes in the small letters that rest on the writing 
line, 23 are straight lines, to which the rule applies. In this drill 
all the parts must be of even height. All the down strokes must 
be straight and of uniform slant and spacing. The slant must be 
the same as in the oblique straight line drill. The lines must be 
perfectly light. The quick up-and-down movement and stop, is 
the most important feature to master. It must be mastered to 
make a success of future lessons. Make the usual full page. 


LESSON 27 

This drill requires the application of the rule for the small For the 1 there must be a quick up-and-down movement and stop 
letter arm movement as distinctly as did the preceding lesson. to insure making the long down stroke straight. In making the i 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


291 



another quick up-and-down movement and stop is required. The e 
is made with the same movement. Each of the two parts of the 
u requires a distinct quick up-and-down movement and stop. Thus 
the succession of movements and stops is the same as in the pre¬ 
ceding drill, except as to details of size and the short turns at the 
tops of 1 and e, which are not perceptible in watching the move¬ 
ments. In watching the arm as it makes the succession of move¬ 
ments required to make this drill and the preceding one, prac¬ 
tically no difference can be observed, if both are done with the 
true small letter arm movement. From the above explanation it 
will be understood that all the down strokes in this drill must be 
straight. Also they must all be on the same slant, the slant of 


the oblique straight line drill. The i, e and u are of even height 
and the same as the 1 below the crossing of the loop. By cutting 
off the loop at the crossing an i is left. There is no retrace at 
the top of either part of the u. The two down strokes of the 
u are of even length. All the lines must be light. The movement 
must be free. The glide must be smooth. The entire line should 
be written without lifting the pen or shifting the position of the 
arm or paper. If in any event the pen must be lifted it should 
not be more than once for the complete line. Above every other 
requirement the matter of working strictly by the small letter 
arm movement rule should be observed. Fill the page in the usual 
manner. 


LESSON 28 


This drill is in every way the same as the preceding drill ex¬ 
cept in the arrangement of the letters. The small letter move¬ 
ment rule is applied the same. For the five straight down strokes 
in the word the quick up-and-down movement and stop must be 
repeated five times. Each movement must be distinct. Each down 
stroke must be straight. The spacing should be slightly longer 
between the words than between the letters in the word. The 
pen should not be lifted for the entire line and there should be no 
shifting of position in the arm or paper. The purpose of these 
drills is to master the movements that produce good writing, and 
to build up reserve power. Nothing but intelligent practice of 
the right kind can accomplish these ends. It is worse than a 
waste of time to make a half rolling movement for this drill. Such 
practice is positively injurious. Each part of the drill must be 


made to stand upright, showing that a definite purpose actuated 
the movement that produced it. The quick up-and-down move¬ 
ment and stop for each straight down stroke and the joined pre¬ 
ceding up stroke is the one thing that should be mastered. Having 
mastered this process all small letter writing becomes easy. Good 
writing is much easier to execute with a good movement than is 
poor writing with a poor movement. No good penman finds it 
difficult to produce good writing. His secret is in having mas¬ 
tered the movements that produce good writing. The student 
should be concerned with nothing so much as to always use the 
correct process in practicing penmanship, since the process is of 
much more importance than the product while learning. The 
product should only be used to show how well the process has been 
learned. Make the usual full page. 



292 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 29 



This drill introduces two new features; viz., the miniature capi¬ 
tal letter movement in the oval of the a, and the “tick” stroke 
used in the last part of the w and b. In making the small oval 
letters such as o, a, the first part of d, etc., the movement required 
is the same as in capitals, and is designated the miniature capital 
letter movement. In finishing the w, v, b and o a slight retrace 
is required which is called a “tick” stroke. The tick strokes are 
made in accordance with the small letter movement rule, being 
straight strokes and requiring the stop at the bottom. In the 
present drill, therefore, the miniature capital letter movement is 
used in making the oval of the a and the small letter movement 
is used to complete the a, making the second down stroke straight, 
with the stop at the bottom. The l’s must each be made with a 
quick up-and-doivn movement and stop. Each of the three parts 
of the w requires a distinct movement, made according to the 


small letter movement rule. The long straight down strokes in 
w are like the corresponding stroke in the i, but the short down 
stroke, the tick stroke, calls for extra attention. This tick stroke 
should be. straight and should retrace upon the up stroke, with a 
stop at the bottom of the stroke the same as is required in 
making the long straight down strokes. In the finish of the b the 
tick stroke is also used, and the small letter movement rule must 
be applied. After making the stop at the bottom of the tick stroke 
the movement swings toward the right at right angles. The tick 
stroke is required to permit making such letters as e, i, etc., after 
b, w, v and o, the correct height. The long spaces between the 
joined words should be fully considered. The pen should not be 
lifted until the sentence has been completed. Make the usual full 
page. 


LESSON 30 




This drill introduces the combined capital and small letter move¬ 
ments. This is a feature of the arm movement writing that re¬ 
quires considerable practice to bring it under full control. Many 
persons are able to make the capitals better than the small letters, 
which is because they do not have at command the small letter 
movement. Others are able to make either well but cannot make 
the transition from one to the other smoothly. The present drill is 
to develop the power of passing from capitals to small letters 
without hesitation and without a break in the movement. All 
the features involved in this drill have been explained in pre¬ 


ceding drills. It should be noted that both letters are of equal 
height; that the two loops are of the same width, and that both 
loops have the same slant. The count is 4 and the movement must 
come to a full stop at the bottom of the 1. The entire line must 
be written without lifting the pen or shifting the position of the 
arm or paper. The spacing is uniform throughout the line. The 
lines must be light. The movement must be rapid. Such errors 
as turning the hand toward the right as the movement progresses 
across the page must be guarded against. The wrist and fleshy 
part of the hand must be held above the desk. Every considera- 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


293 


tion must be given to the elements of movement that will add to 
final mastery. The touch must be constantly improved. No 
product should be considered satisfactory unless the process by 
which it was produced was correct. To develop the power to 
write well is to make a real success. To merely make good letters 


may or may not be valuable. If the movement does not operate 
easily the impediment should be discovered and corrected. It may 
be a matter of position, or clothing, or merely a lack of training. 
Make the usual page. 


LESSON 31 




This drill is designed to extend the principle of movement com¬ 
menced in the preceding drill, that of blending the capital and 
small letter movements. In the two parts of the u and in each 
of the l’s the small letter movement rule must be applied with all 
possible care. It should be noted that the G and the l’s are of equal 
height; that the three loops are of equal width and stand at the 
same slant. The two down strokes in the u and in the two l’s 
must be straight. There is no retrace at the top of the u. The 
crossings of the l’s are at the height of the u. The pen must not 
be lifted until the line has been completed. The point at which it 
seems necessary to. lift the pen marks the point where improve¬ 
ment must be made. This required improvement may be in posi¬ 
tion or in scope or reserve power. The student should find the 
real cause of the trouble and make every effort to remedy it. 


Speed is always important in arm movement practice and freedom 
and smoothness of movement should be considered in all prac¬ 
tice. Those who watch an expert penman at work almost in¬ 
variably remark: “How easy it looks.” This is how all the work 
of the student should impress the onlooker. If the movement ap¬ 
pears to be cramped or stiff and moves spasmodically and with 
irregularities it will likely be so hampered in reality and should 
be studied until the defect is found after which diligent effort 
should be made to correct it. It may be that the scope is still 
too limited and that the large mere movement drills should be 
practiced. It may be that there has never been sufficient speed 
developed. It may be that the clothing on the arm is too tight. 
Much time may be saved by getting at the root of the trouble 
promptly. Make the usual full page. 


LESSON 32 



In this sentence every down stroke in the small letters is 
straight, and the small letter movement rule must be applied to 
every down stroke except those in the L and f. In the word “him,” 
for instance, there are six distinct movements, such as are de¬ 


scribed under the small letter movement rule; a quick up-and- 
down movement and stop. The details of form should be under¬ 
stood with perfect clearness. All the loops of 1, h and f are of 
equal height and the same height as the L. The t’s are not as 



294 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


high as the loops. The cross of the t comes at two-thirds the 
height of the loops. The final t as used in the first and last words 
does not have a cross, has little or no retrace at the top and is 
finished with a left curve. The tick stroke in w must be given 
proper consideration. The spacing between letters in words is 
longer than between parts of letters. Note the spaces in h and m 
and between the letters in the word “him.” No vertical space is 
left between words unless a word begins with an oval letter such 
as a or o, from which the introductory stroke is omitted. Note that 
between the words “him” and “fill” the beginning point of f is 


directly beneath the finishing point of m. This rule is followed in 
all the inter-word spaces, except when an initial oval letter is 
used, or the final d. This sentence should be written without 
changing the position of the arm or paper; that is, it should be 
written with a free, smooth, continuous movement carrying the pen 
entirely across the line as though all the words were connected in 
a movement drill. The line quality should be given all necessary 
attention. Coarse, muddy lines should never be considered satis¬ 
factory in learning penmanship because they hinder instead of help 
in real training. Make the usual full page. 


LESSON 33 



This lesson is offered to give special practice in making the f 
along with the regular application of the small letter movement 
to the other straight down strokes. The f is made with a move¬ 
ment that is a blend of the capital letter and the small letter 
movements. The long down stroke must be straight, but there is 
no stop made in the movement at the bottom. The upper loop in 
f is the same form as 1. The lower loop closes at the line and is 
the same form as the loop in q. The upper loops in the f’s and 
the b loop extend to the same height as the first and second parts 
of the W. The last up stroke of the W is two-thirds as high as 
the first and second parts. The tick strokes in the o’s, v and b 
should be worked out with care. On account of the omission of 
the introductory strokes from the o’s a slight inter-word space is 
left between “We” and “offer” and between “feet” and “of.” Note 


that no vertical space is left between other words. The move¬ 
ment should be given the same close attention as in pure move¬ 
ment drills. The entire line should be written as though all the 
words were connected and no change in position should be made 
for writing the full line. All the down strokes in the small letters 
of this sentence, except two in the o’s, are straight. The slant 
must be uniform. The spacing between letters in words must be 
sufficiently elongated to set each letter off to itself distinctly. The 
matter of spacing is one of the chief elements in legibility. The 
fine line quality must not be neglected. Speed must be a con¬ 
sideration at all times. The easy, smooth glide of the little finger 
must suffer no interruption. Every letter should be considered a 
test of movement. The word “fibre” is also spelled “fiber.” Make 
the usual full page. 


LESSON 34 


This lesson is offered to give special practice in making the s, 
along with further application of the small letter movement rule 
to the straight down strokes of other letters. The s, like the r, 


belongs to the group of small letters called the medial group. 
These two letters are made a little higher than the minimum let¬ 
ters, which is necessary to give them the necessary size to har- 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


295 



monize with the others. The detail which needs particular at¬ 
tention is the retrace at the top. This retraced portion extends 
above the height of the regular minimum group, which includes 
the i, n, m, etc. The body of the letter is well rounded, being 
formed with a compound curve. The bottom has a full curve and 
the long compound curve terminates on the initial up stroke with 
a slight dot. The s is one of the most beautiful and also one of 
the most difficult letters to make, and should he studied very mi¬ 
nutely and practiced very carefully. A retrace is also made in add¬ 
ing the final stroke. The most inexcusable error that seems to 
be possible in making the s is that of making the initial up stroke 
a left curve instead of a right curve. This invariably leads to 


making the letter round at the top, and the result is that nothing 
like the correct form is produced. If necessary the letter should 
be carefully drawn over and over at the beginning to get the 
correct form clearly impressed on the mind, and to acquaint the 
writing nerves with the correct form. In all the study and prac¬ 
tice of the letter four details should be kept clearly in mind; 
namely, to make the letter slightly higher than the minimum let¬ 
ters; to make the retrace at the top; to make an intense com¬ 
pound curve for the down stroke, and to make the compound 
curve down stroke terminate on the up stroke with a slight dot. 
Make the usual full page. 


LESSON 35 



This lesson is offered to give special practice in making the r 
along with all the other features that enter into practice of the 
small letters. The sentence contains more than an average of oval 
letters which require the use of the miniature capital letter 
movement; it also has loops, has the tick stroke and has a good 
many straight down strokes which require the application of the 
small letter movement rule. It thus offers an unusual amount of 
material covering the entire small letter field. The r, with the 
s, belongs to the medial group of small letters, and is slightly 
higher than the minimum group. The part from the shoulder up 
is higher than the i, n, m, etc. The retrace at the top is like that 
in the s. The stroke from the retrace to the shoulder is very 
slightly curved downward and inclines downward throughout its 
entire length. It should never be made horizontal, and never 


turned upward at the shoulder. The shoulder is a short turn and 
the stroke below the shoulder is a straight line, as in the i. The 
letter should be carefully drawn over and over until the correct 
form has become clearly impressed on the mind and until the 
writing nerves becomes acquainted with the correct outline. The 
freedom, smoothness and speed of movement that have been em¬ 
phasized in all preceding lessons should be maintained in practi^ 
ing this lesson. The spacing between the words should be noted. 
The difference between the spaces preceding the o in “over” and 
preceding the a and all other inter-word spaces should be ob¬ 
served. The final d in the word “road” is a feature to consider. 
The movement should be rapid, the lines should be light. The 
spacing between letters in words should be brought up to the 
highest standard. Make the usual full page. 




296 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 36 


With this lesson is introduced the section of the course devoted 
to signature writing. This lesson is merely to acquaint the stu¬ 
dent with the feature of combining several different capitals, 
which is quite different from repeating the same letter. The 
spacing is wide, which makes the connection easier from the move¬ 
ment standpoint. No detail should be slighted, and particular at¬ 
tention should be directed to the stroke between the V and U, as 
this will be found to be the most difficult. Note that the con¬ 
necting strokes are all alike and are made with a smooth con¬ 
tinuous stroke. Good speed is a possibility in this lesson and as 
soon as the movement learns to follow the outline the speed 
should be maintained at the rate used in joining a single capital. 
The size should be carefully guarded. It is a common fault to 
make the first letter out of proportion to the others. Very often 


it is made too small, but some have the habit of making the first 
letter larger than the rest. The connecting ovals are all placed at 
right angles to the slant of the letters, and all extend about half 
below the line. The second parts of all four letters are of even 
height and are all lower than the first parts. The V must not be 
made too wide. The three down strokes in M and the two in N 
are straight but the first down strokes in V and U are slight com¬ 
pound curves. The finger glide should be watched and improved 
if faulty. The movement should glide smoothly and easily entirely 
across the page. The lines should be light. The initial ovals in all 
four letters should be alike. There should be no loops at the bot¬ 
tom joinings of the N and M or top of the last part of the U. Make 
the usual full page. 



LESSON 37 




With this lesson the work of actual signature writing is under¬ 
taken. The first step in commencing each lesson should be to 
make a very critical study of the copy, tracing out all details 
with a dry pen very carefully. It is impossible to make the hand 
produce something that the mind does not hold in clear outline. 
After tracing the copy repeatedly with a dry pen the pen should 
be inked and the form attempted on paper, first drawing the 
capitals carefully to accustom the writing nerves to the outlines. 
When the forms can be followed accurately with some ease the 
practice should commence in earnest and should be continued un¬ 


til the signature can be written with a dashing movement. It will 
be noted that a number of the capitals are more or less modified 
to make the joining more convenient, or to add character to them 
for signature use. A signature should always be highly legible 
and the more nearly perfectly the individual letters are formed the 
greater the safety that attaches to the signature. It is a serious 
mistake to suppose that a scrawled or tangled signature is a safe¬ 
guard against forgery. The fact is that such signatures are the 
most easily forged of all. The expert forger never attempts to 
forge the perfectly legible and approximately accurate signature. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


297 


Individuality comes out ever more and more clearly in good writ¬ 
ing. Scribbling, like poor language, is the common stock of the 
mob. Every one knows that individuality finds full expression in 
the language of those who are proficient in the subject; in the 


art of the expert artist, in the work of the expert mechanic, but 
few realize that the same rule holds good in writing. Make the 
usual full page. 


LESSON 38 



Study the copy minutely, trace the letters carefully with a dry pen and practice it until it can be made with a rapid movement, such 
as a good business man uses in signing his name. Make the usual full page. 


LESSON 39 



Make the usual close study of the copy and acquaint the writing nerves with the forms by tracing with a dry pen and drawing the 
correct outlines carefully a few times, then practice until it can be made with speed. Make the usual full page. 


LESSON 40 


Proceed as usual in learning the details of this copy and in acquainting the writing nerves with the work they are to do. Make all 
lines light and learn to make the signature with speed. Make the usual full page. 



298 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



Give special study and practice to the connecting strokes. They must stand at right angles to the slant of the letters and extend 
below the line. Note the long straight stroke in J and that its upper loop is twice as wide as the lower. Make the usual full page. 


LESSON 42 



Note that the J begins slightly below the line so the two crossings may be made at the line. Make the three capitals of even height. 
Do not lift the pen until the name has been completed. Learn to make it with speed. Put dash into your work. Make the usual full 
page. 


LESSON 43 



This name is written without lifting the pen except to make the top to the T. It may require special care to give the J the proper 
slant. The B should be made true to the standard form, with full oval body. Practice until it can be made rapidly. Make the usual full 
page. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


299 


LESSON 44 


This signature should be written without lifting the pen except to put the top on the F. The three capitals must be of even height. 
The loops in L and G are alike. Speed should be considered important. Make the usual full page. 



LESSON 45 








The B and R should have special study and all possible care to bring them up to the standard of form. The broad turns at the ends 
of the body are important. Make the capitals uniform in height and slant. Make the usual full page. 


LESSON 46 






This signature is to be written without lifting the pen. The loops in the tops of the three capitals must be on the same slant. Uni¬ 
formity in height is of first importance. Develop a rapid signature style. Make the usual full page. 

LESSON 47 


This signature is to be written without lifting the pen. The minute loops at the tops of the capitals are like the one already given 
in the E and should be worked out skillfully. They add strength to the signature. Make the usual full page. 





300 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 48 



This signature introduces a new feature, that of beginning with 
other than the first capital. This is a common practice in good 
signature writing. A first class signature is sometimes made 
by making all the capitals in the reverse order, commencing with 
the last one. In this case the I is made first, it being followed by 
a rather large connecting oval, and then the J and then the M. 
The style of crossing the various strokes and entwining the con¬ 
necting loops and ovals is interesting and requires considerable 
skill. Parallelism is a prominent feature in this signature. Note 
the number of crossings made where the loops of the J close. The 
three capitals must be of even height but vary greatly in width. 
The loop in the I is half the width of that in the upper part of 
the J, and the loop in the J is about two-thirds as wide as the 


main oval in the M. The minute loop at the beginning of the M 
rests on the line. This signature may require more study and 
practice than any of the preceding but will repay all effort made 
to master it. Having mastered this one the student will find it 
much easier to work out original combinations than he had pre¬ 
viously thought possible for him. The signature must be prac¬ 
ticed until it can be made rapidly, or little will be gained, as mere 
drawing will add nothing to the movement power. Such a signa¬ 
ture offers more than usual possibilities for individuality and 
when thoroughly mastered will be most difficult to imitate, con¬ 
sidering the peculiarities that go with individuality. Make the 
usual full page. 


LESSON 49 



This is another lesson giving an irregular order of the capitals. As in the preceding lesson the middle letter is made first, then the 
first and then the third, except that the top of the middle letter is made last. The beginning point is the top of the T stem. Make 
the usual full page. 


LESSON 50 



This is still another signature in which the second letter is made first. Very careful practice will be required to make each of the 
letters accurate. The uniformity in size must be particularly watched. Make the usual full page. 





THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


301 


LESSON 51 



The above are forms of salutations used in business and social correspondence. Write the full set twice on the page. If necessary 
write on the first line under the heading. 



302 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 52 



These are forms of complimentary closings used in business and social correspondence. Write the full set three times on the page, 
using the first line under the heading if necessary. 


LESSON 53 



This is the beginning of a letter. The first three lines considered together are called the address. The fourth line is the salutation. 
Write the full form three times on the page, using the first line under the heading if necessary. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


303 


LESSON 54 



This is the beginning of a letter of application. The first line at the top is called the heading. The fifth and sixth lines belong to 
the body of the letter. Write the form twice on the page, using the first line under the heading if necessary. 




304 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 55 



This is the beginning of a letter used in ordering goods. Write it twice on the page. What does via mean? 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


305 


LESSON 56 



Good numerals cannot be made without carrying out the descriptions given in the above copy. Note the final d’s and t’s and the 
spacing between the letters in words. Write this twice on the page. 



306 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 57 

/■£ o itsCy ry o/£ (3 Us Cy ry 
U 3 UsCyry 0/£'3 UsCyry 0/fy# 
3 UsCyry0/3 c 3 UsCy ry 0/ 3 fy# 
UsCyry 0/3 3 UsCyry0/3 c5/y # 

sCy sy 0/3 3 UsC yryo/3 3 U/y # 


/-2 c 3 4sCyryo/33UsCyryo/y# 
33 UsCyryo/33UsCyryo//y# 
3 Us Cy ry 0 /3 3 Us C y ry 0 / 3 /y # 
UsCyryo/33Ust,yryo/33$y# 
sCyryo/ 33 UsCyryo /33 U / y # 
C y r y 0 / 3 3 U s Cy ry 0 / 3 3 U 3 / y # 
yryo/33UsCyryo/334sC$y# 
ryo/ 33 UsCyryo/ 33 UsCy/y# 
yo/33UsCyryo/33UsC y r$ y # 
0/33 U3(,ysyo/33UsCyry$y# 


Numerals should be made very accurately because they nearly always represent values. Write the larger sets on the ruled lines and 
the smaller ones on and between the lines. Follow the arrangement. Make the full copy twice on the page. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


307 


LESSON 58 



This is a statement of account. The meaning is that I. N. James is debtor to, or in debt to, L. H. Hausam. Note the punctuation. 
Write the statement twice on the page. 





308 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



This is a ledger account kept by some firm or individual who sells merchandise to Barton and Company. Mdse, is the abbreviation 
for merchandise. The items at the left side are purchases made by Barton and Company. The items on the right are records of pay¬ 
ments made by Barton and Company. Write the form twice on the page. 





THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


309 


LESSON 60 



This is a receipt. It is a very common commercial paper and much depends upon its being accurately in all respects. The amount 
in numerals and in words must agree, otherwise the words only are accepted. Write it three times on the page. 




310 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 61 



This is a promissory note, a common form of commercial paper. H. A. Osborn is called the payee and H. E. Plumb, the maker. 
Write it twice on the page. 





THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


311 


LESSON 62 

THE COMMERCIAL NATIONAL BANE & TRUST CO. No. 



This is a check. The printing at the top and left end is called Qothic. It should be practiced along with the writing. It is the most 
simple and practical style of printing that can be learned. Write the form twice on the page. 



312 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 63 


This is an expression of a thought worth remembering, as well as copy providing the best of materials for the study and practice 
of good penmanship. Write it twice on the page. 




THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


313 


LESSON 64 



This copy provides material that will test any skill to the utmost. The signatures can be practiced for weeks and months with 
profit. They are all practical forms. Write the copy twice on the page. 



314 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 65 



Students who have never been fully impressed with the importance of mastering the loop used in the T, H and N of this copy, should 
make a study of it. It is the most common element used in the capital alphabet. Write the copy three times on the page. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


315 


LESSON 66 



This is the body of a note or letter of introduction. It is commonly used in business and is carried by the person named and by 
him banded to the person be is to meet. Write the copy twice on the page. 



316 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 



LESSON 67 


This is the beginning of a common form of agreement. Practically all agreements begin in this form. Write it twice on the page. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


317 


LESSON 68 



This is to acquaint the student with the great scope of the whole field of penmanship, as well as to provide an excellent copy for 
study and practice. Write the copy twice on the page. 



318 


THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


LESSON 69 



It is part of a thorough penmanship education to know the above answer. It should be well understood as well as well written. 
Write the lesson twice on the page. 



THE HAUSAM SYSTEM OF PLAIN PENMANSHIP 


319 



The elements of the above answer have been emphasized throughout this course. The student should understand them thoroughly, 
and embody them in all his mere movement practice. Write this twice on the page. 

















\ 



I 




































































































































































































































. ’W . 




"ol? 




o k : 

\y / \/?v^''' V-^V V^^*'v**’ "o %.t^' ,0-' 

■ ‘ <*\, ^0" * ■* * °» ^ V * • *.* /■ <J> »»•«- ^ O' ,•“ » £N <Y^ » « o, 

* > v- v. .^v °mm?: 

o r .>■■,'% V*'--''/^.\'*"'^ 

4 ^ ^ **■ v rV * _ A 


9 


♦ <&p ^ o * #0 

. Jt <?y & • 4 ^ 

0 V o, -o. * • A 

t • , V $4 #6 • • 0 * 


** • c? *1V © ^7 / v » 2A\V 

1 **^$kPv a °yjir 

*7 tv 7» <&*" V,, •«. * * 


*♦ & %■ • 


*♦ T. 


++$ 


C v ♦’ 


A* < 




^ T 




V*~‘>° v ... S:'--° a . 

*♦ ^ *♦ .-aK** ^ ./' •■’ 


. v 4O .!•■- *> V s ,vLM-.) 

' W * 

A*, *mi^> A*. 


r * a 

r * AV ** • 


% A? 'Vj)> O v 

iOA ^ * ^^^.4 

G* % '...• A 

l v *o, 

* O 


♦ ** • 


• t^'V ° u 
>* ^ •• 


•» A^'^a «» * 

» A.V . 


* # % V. 

♦ «K sK • 


/ V V 

»• ‘ * A <. *^T*” .0 

O A’ a • • • # V. (A * »• ‘ • 


* aV*^ ■* 1 

' AV . 


; *.-, 
(£v * 


F * A>^ - 1 

;♦ ^ • 


- 0 ^” ..<•. \ '"‘'jf . — 

‘ ”V . c u ° *4* .’ASSSkV. •?. 


' r. • * .0 


.. £ 'V "A 

<• aOLA V • 

o. 


u A >V > - * 

'.' # ^ •. 


c° 


• 1 1 • 4& ^O 


« 4> a 




. + *P 


A° 

a 0^ *• 


r o I I 






• * • A 


« aV^ - 



• ^ J’ -W' % v "rt . 

• CP vfV. ° 'VYttftxW « A$ ^ 4 4? <P\ °w 

-♦ V, V * V®*V 'ow*' A 

A '♦TV’T*' C 4 T vD *o • > * **> V '••• A** . ^p <V> 

/'.^.% " X-^fcV ' 

A »^n # . VJ C&. a %*cr • < K*irafc^^ ° V 


• <& % • 





V ,-. •« 


. 

1 v % A-’ «$> a* » *agV . <£ v 




vV* 




I d WM\W A V ^ • $£3§SPK> ♦ «? ^ 

1 i."-^^* ** ** .’W?' / %. •-•• ^ <.*”•/ , °* 

s*> *o . » * A <U ' •• 1 AY ... */* A> o»»4 <f> Av •'•'** c 

L*°o A •isKsJlr.'V . G° s'irMk- A .'l^lliV. %. A C $$£&. 


• A V *^ 

* A V • 






















































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































